hello :)

Last night I had a dream about scrapbooking. I'm sure it was because I happened upon a page of mine posted on Pinterest and that got in my head somehow when I was off in lalaland. (My favorite place to be) I don't remember what I was doing exactly, but I think I was at CHA and I was flipping through an album. I remember being SO happy. Like, it was fast forwarded to today and I was back scrapping and I was like, how did I ever stop? I know why and how I stopped. My children got older and I wanted to share less. I wasn't comfortable putting too much information online of them. Els was still fair game cuz she was a baby. But now they've all gotten even older, and I'm the mom who's looking back and reading her scrapbooks and thinking, I AM SO GLAD I WROTE THIS DOWN I TOTALLY WOULD HAVE FORGOTTEN THIS, THANK GOD! And oh wow, that's a nice design, and that paper- ohhh i loved that paper and those stickers! Oooh. My ❤ fluttered remembering the feeling of it all. A few months ago I realized I had some credit in my 2peas cart and bought a handful of things. I was so excited when I spotted that familiar box on my doorstep, the rush of ripping it open and feeling it all. Then I put it in my stash and haven't thought about it until last night.

2014 has been a great year for me so far. A new way of taking care of myself as my little ones don't physically need me taking care of them as much. I still am here for them 24/7 and care for them in other ways than chasing after them and taking them to the park like I used to. It's like a little spark fired up and with baby steps, I'm discovering me again. I hope that I will revisit that stash of supplies and get my thoughts on paper like I did before. It truly is such an amazing treasure that I am so glad to have. Here's to 2014 and baby steps.

March 22, 2014 4

lump in my throat

…as I say my goodbye to the dear garden at 2peas. I can't believe that it's been almost 10 years since I stumbled upon the site, not knowing a thing about scrapbooking besides thinking it was a little hokey. It was then, as I sat in the middle of the night in our little apartment in Virginia, where I found the Black & White gallery (who remembers that?!) and my life was forever changed. I am in awe at what 2peas provides for the scrapbooking community and how much the little 'ol paper and glue craft has grown. I look back on the albums and albums I have filled with pages and I am so grateful to have been pushed and driven by the garden. I treasure the friendships I've made through this craft and opportunities I've been blessed with. This was a really difficult decision, and as my sweet husband followed up about it with me this morning, tears filled my eyes, and I couldn't help think, 'oh gosh, what have I done?!'

Love to you, sweet Kristina and the team over at 2peas. thanks for taking a chance on me in 2004.

November 2, 2011 24

makes me smile

to pop over to my favorite scrapbooking site and see this happy face on the front page!
details of this cute project can be seen here at this link. we had a fun morning working on it together! there's a challenge that you can participate in, details at the link!

May 29, 2011 3

national scrapbook day at twopeas!

its national scrapbook weekend at twopeas!
this layout is part of the NSD Weekend Blog Hop at two peas. they will be giving away a $25 gift certificate to the store, all you have to do is leave a comment at this link here. you do not need to leave one here at this blog, just at the two peas site.

i am not giving anything away, 2peas is. contest is open till sunday night. there's quite a few projects participating, go find them and increase your chances of winning! more info here at this link.

thanks! happy nsd!

May 6, 2011 0

go soleil

our kira soleil is nearly 16. she's made captain of the flag squad. and today PR'd at the 300 hurdles, qualifying for finals for her league! she does hurdles, long jump and pep. she's worked so hard, we are so proud! she also does prom and makeup and heels. but she also loves being surprised with fresh flowers in her room, a handmade card and watching disney princess movies with elsie. sometimes i shake my head in amazement at how different we are. she's a breath of fresh air. (when she's in a good mood! haha) we love her so! (always!)

May 4, 2011 6

pretty packaging

i had 2 pretty packaging instances the other day and they made me smile.

one of my favorite stores, dots cupcakes, started carrying some love and toast goodies! mmmm 🙂

prettying up client disc files with cute supplies.

and i made a layout that i can't share yet, but here's some of my latest from 2peas!

yes that is a page of everyone in my family. yay me! 🙂

April 15, 2011 9

memories of highschool memorabilia

the other day i had a desire to frame a bunch of chris' polaroids that he's taken for us. i meant to do it streamlined and neatly. the result was a little this and that, much like my scrapbooking pages end up. i wanted to hang it somewhere in the main part of the house but then i thought, uh, it looks too high schooly. but i still loved it. so it went on top of my bedroom dresser. i love it. 🙂

i was definitely the kind of girl that covered every inch of her bulletin board with pictures and memorabilia. pages torn out of magazines covered my walls. cute to see that kira has done the same- mag pages starting to creep up her walls. 🙂

happy friday! 🙂

March 25, 2011 8

sketchbook giveaway!

hi! just wanted to share with you this upcoming class info, i am so excited to be a tiny part of it! 🙂

here's some info:

Join Kelly Purkey and friends for Sketchbook 3! This is a self-paced four week class filled with fresh sketches, easy instructions, beautiful examples, and lots of fun. From April 4th to April 29th a PDF will be delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. By the end of the class, you'll have a complete sketchbook of 12 original sketches, 38 layouts, and an additional 38 sketches based on those creative pages. All of the examples are brand new layouts, exclusive to this class… you won't see them anywhere else. The best part is that you will be receiving an example layout from Kelly for each of the sketches, along with two (or more) example layouts from a very talented contributor. Each PDF for Sketchbook 3 will also include a card designed by the amazing Jennifer McGuire based on the daily sketch.

The class will also include a private message board for questions and sharing ideas on the Studio Calico website. Visit Kelly's blog for more information and to see the full list of contributors.

i have one spot to giveaway in this class! if you sign up and win, kelly will refund your money. leave a comment here by saturday midnight. 🙂

March 16, 2011 81

happy valentine’s day

this year's valentine's colors included greens and yellows and reds. fuschia, pink and purple were last year…she's gotta switch it up now and then! 🙂
hope your day is full of chocolate and more chocolate 🙂

February 14, 2011 1

the girl’s paperie -january CHA release

jubilee:

kitchy:

vintage whimsy:

i did a few home decor items too but of course i forgot to photograph them before i gave them away! i really love this release.. margie did a fantastic job with all the details and colors. so easy to make lovely layouts with gorgeous product!

February 12, 2011 6