Today I'm Sharing.....

what I've been up to in my crafty corner of the living room.

This one for Colour Combo #168 - my youngest daughter at camping this past summer. Can I say how much I love that flower by Maya Road? I bought the ribbon so I can make my own recently - love how they add just the right finishing touch!

This one for Colour Combo #171 - my great Uncle Uiltje. My family doesn't have very many pictures of him as he passed away when he was just three years old. My Dad tells me he was never a healthy child and had a multitude of things happening all at the same time.

And this one which I made as a gift for my husband. Recently he went to his first live NFL game in Buffalo & I wanted to make this to remember it. The logo is not quite right, but I did the best I could with it.

I'm loving having the extra time to sit and create without watching the clock. Next week Monday school starts again and my vacation will be over. Sigh. We have one more "Christmas" get - together to finish up yet, but that won't happen until the middle of January or so.

Looking forward to a new year starting & wondering what it will bring.

Have a good one!

Wishing you a.....

very Merry Christmas from my family to yours.

The lilac tree.....

can't take it anymore. Here's what it looks like at my house today.

Snow day #3 this week for everyone but me. I have an in-town route and so I drove this morning. Not terrible except for unplowed streets. They're working on it though, so hopefully it will be better this afternoon.

The kids annual Christmas musical is on tonight - can't wait to go see my kids sing their hearts out! Also looking forward to this weekend with a Christmas get-together with friends, and my hubby's staff Christmas. It's going to be kid free thanks to my in-laws...=D


Have a great one!

I got to.....

sleep in today!

Yep, that's right - snow day #2. Still in my pj's as I type this - again. But I have NOT worn them for 48 hours straight, I did get dressed for a little while yesterday. =D

It's still miserable here. It has gotten better since I woke up, but they say more is coming. Today my husband was forced to stay home as well, since the highway he takes to work is currently closed.

Still loving the snow days!!

Snow Day #1.....

today. I'm glad to be home with the kiddos - it's nasty out there. This picture was taken at 10:30 this morning & it hasn't quit yet.

I'm still in my pjs - love that. I'm gonna take some time and scrapbook a little.

I love a snow day!

Well, so much.....

for random babbling eh? I can't believe that it's been so long since I posted! I've changed up the look of the blog again - what do you think?

My daughter and I entered our guinea pig Toby into a Furbaby contest over at Eclectique Butterfly's Facebook Fan Page a few weeks ago, and this week we found out that we won!! You can see his super cute pic here over at Julie's blog. She makes the cutest bags out of the "booty's" of recycled jeans - LOVE them!

Otherwise not too much has been happening - working every day, trying to keep up with the house, finishing up the finicky finishing details of the living room and contemplating what the next project MIGHT be.....I know I said I was finished with renovating, but this summer, the tiles starting falling off the walls in the main bathroom, so this next summer might be filled with yet another renovation. Sigh.

I'm trying to find a few moments everyday to be creative - I've been making more cards than layouts as they take a little less time. When I have made a LO they've mostly been for other people, and so I haven't got too much to share right now. Hopefully over the next month that will change, as in three weeks, we start Christmas vacation!! =D Recently, my SIL asked me to come share card making with her women's group. I have never really "taught" anyone in that way before, but it was fun. It helped that it was a small group, & that the ladies were really friendly. We had a great time, and maybe we'll do it again sometime.

We finally got our first taste of winter this week with some snow and colder temperatures. We have had it fairly easy so far, but I hear rumors of a miserable winter ahead. The word "Yuck" sums up how I feel about winter. As I type this, my two youngest kiddos are outside shovelling up a storm. THEY love the snow. More power to them, I say.

We recently attended our fourth (yep, 4th) wedding of the year. While I enjoyed every one, I was glad for the getaways with my hubby, and I am very happy for each couple, I am sick of weddings now and are glad that they are done.

So that about sums up the last month or so here in our household. Have a great day & stay warm!!

Remembering that.....

It is the VETERAN, not the preacher

Who has given us freedom of religion.

It is the VETERAN, not the reporter,

Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the VETERAN, not the poet,

Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the VETERAN, not the campus organizer,

Who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is the VETERAN, not the lawyer,

Who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the VETERAN, not the politician,

Who has given us the right to vote.

It is the VETERAN, who salutes the flag,

It is the VETERAN, who serves under the flag.

I wanted.....

to link this post and this video today.

They will make you think. I encourage you to re-post & spread the word.

Have a beautiful day.

Celebrating

thirty - five today. How is it possible that yet another year has gone by? I don't feel 35, heck, I don't think I even LOOK 35!!! Wasn't high school just yesterday??

At any rate, I'm ok with it. Really.

ETA - I read THIS beautiful post today. I want to encourage you to take a few minutes to read it too.

Have a beautiful day!

Still Alive.....

So, while I know I should be blogging, quite honestly, I don't even know where to start!

The days fly by so quickly & this September I'm having trouble "getting it together". Does anyone else out there feel like they're at a standstill while life just passes them by? I'm seriously thinking that I might, underneath it all, be slightly depressed. I KNOW I'm sleep deprived, so that's not helping & I KNOW I'm feeling stressed. I think that these last few weeks of rainy days are also not helping.

In the midst of it all, I've managed a little creativity, but way less than usual. I've been asked to help a group of fellow scrappers from my church put together a memory album for a widow in our congregation, so that's mostly where my efforts have been lately. I wish I could let you see them, but I just can't share those pages with you all. Here's a few pages that I've created more for myself :

For Color Combo #159

For the September Paper Poppy Sketch & Challenge

Have a happy day!

When it rains.....

it pours!

The reno is moving along - this week we put in carpet and are slowly refurnishing the room as time and energy permits. Next week the trim is going up & then the room will officially be done!!!!!!!!!!! Thank goodness it's almost over!

I have made sure that the one piece that is in the living room is my desk - and a new (to me) one at that! I found it in my Dad's barn and have painted the top to match the darkest colour in my dining room wallpaper. Here's the before and after (well, after one coat anyways, but you get the idea).

Since we're not totally finished yet, I'll save the after pic of the living room for later.

So, since my creativity can now be released, I've made another page. I have had LOTS of time to think about the pages I'm going to do over the summer and this is just one.



Literally, we heard those dreaded words over and over again on the way to camping this year. Since it was a perfect fit for the theme of the page, I used the July Paper Poppy Main kit and Liz Qualmans August Paper Poppy Sketch for this one.

Off to keep on going with the living room, have a great day!

I couldn't wait.....

anymore. The living room isn't completley together yet, but i just HAD to make something. So, this is my first LO since June.

These are all my Grandparents. They have all passed away now, but I regret, among other things, that they never met any of my children before they went. I also made it for Colour Combo #157 and Pencil Lines Sketch #200.

Now, I've got to get back to getting the house together! Have a good one!

IT'S DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The living room is FINALLY finished!!!!!!!! The last coat of paint went on this afternoon, so the rest of the weekend will be spent cleaning up the room, hanging lights and putting the living room together. SO excited to sit in there again - it's been 8 -- yep that's right -- EIGHT weeks since we've been able to use that room properly.

Pictures to come soon - have a great night!

FINALLY.....

bought myself one of these :


I have been coveting it for about three years now; and I get to bring it home on Wednesday. Happy, happy, joy, joy!! Happy Birthday to me!!

But, it comes with sad news as well. My LSS is closing its doors at the end of the month. But out of every good thing at the store, I'm going to miss the staff most of all. April, the owner, has become a friend and she also gave me my first "DT" shot by asking me to design some layouts for her when she first opened her store. But, I'll be looking forward to continuing to be a part of her Crop for Cancer events that she's still planning on hosting.

We're getting the drywall mudded!!! Can't wait for this part to be over though, it's messy! After mudding, it's paint and then I can put my room back together again.

This week we're heading over to Toronto for a couple of days. My hubby has a work conference, so the kids and I are going along. We have plans to go to the Science Centre and Centreville - can't wait for those!!

Just a few weeks of summer vacation left & then it's back to work. Fingers crossed for a better year!!

Have a great night!

Talking to my hubby again.....

and he's working on speeding up the reno. Hopefully we'll have the house back before September and I can get the cleaning up at least started before we go back to school. At the very least, I NEED my scrappy space set up; I'm chomping at the bit to get creating again!! =D

I got my bus route today & thankfully, it's changed enough that the students that caused me so much stress last year are no longer on! Yippee!! Now, we'll see how the new kids work out, but hopefully, it'll be a better year.

Spending tomorrow getting ready for a weekend of camping - just the 5 of us! Looking forward to some family time away from everyone and everything.

Have a great weekend!!

Disappointed and Annoyed.....

as it looks like this renovation will be not finished until the end of September. I had hoped for this to be done before the school year started but we are waiting, waiting, waiting for stuff on the exterior of the house to be done before the interior environmental assessment can be done. We are also away for the next two weekends in a row, so that doesn't help.

I'm not expressing it very well, but right now I'm not really talking to my husband. THAT's how annoyed I am. I don't think he really understands how frustrating it really is to live in chaos 24/7, how depressing it is to be unable to be creative and how helpless I feel because there's NOTHING I can do about it. Sigh. On to losing my mind now.....

Try to have a good day.

Managing.....

a little creativity in the midst of all the chaos. But, I will say it's not been easy with no real table surface to work on. A cardboard box doesn't really cut it, you know?? At any rate, this month the challenge over at Paper Poppy was to use circles and 2 items from any PP Kit on your layout. But, since I have limited space and resources, I decided to make a card instead. Maybe it won't count for the contest, but that doesn't really matter. I was just glad to do SOMETHING crafty, and since I just received my new kit yesterday, here's my card :

I used the July kit for most of it, plus a rub on from the June kit and pearls from the May kit.

Also in this picture are two of the books that I've read this summer. They are both, however, the last books in a large series, so if you've never read any of them, you might have to start at the beginning. I will warn you ahead of time that the Naamah series is NOT tame. By any stretch of the imagination. But I still enjoyed the series very much.

Otherwise, the reno is moving along. In fact, as I'm typing this, my hubby, his Dad and his brother are all hanging drywall in the living room. We're that much closer to getting our 400 sq feet back. THANK GOODNESS. I'm going just a little bit mad here.

Have a good one!

Getting Ready.....

for another fun filled camping trip. My sister and I and our families meet every year at a Provincial Park that is about halfway between our homes and we camp. This year we're going here. It's always fun and this year my youngest brother, his wife and their little guy are coming too! The more the merrier I say.

The reno has once again stalled because I'm not an electrician. So, it's not going to be done in four weeks like I planned. But it better be done before school starts again because I. AM. NOT. GOING. TO. DO. THIS. ALL. SUMMER. LONG!!! Do you sense the frustration at all? It will all be better in the end is becoming my mantra. But I gotta say 5 people living in 400 square feet less than normal is starting to wear a little thin. I realized that I have not posted any kind of picture in awhile, so here's some of my faves from this reno we've got goin' on :

My DS giving a hand tossing out the ceiling.

The living room walls filling up the bin.

Cleaning up the mess. Normally, I look better than this.

My living room last week. This explains the lovely look above.

The reason for my angst, as this is how we're living right now.

Have a good one.

Back on track.....

again! We called in the re-inforcements and the reno has moved along. So, in the last 2 days my father in law and I have finished taking the boards off the walls, strapped the studs out for 2 more inches of depth & therefore 2 more inches of insulation, moved some plumbing out of the way, put in the header and removed the south interior wall, and started insulating. It's nice to have it starting up again. Plus, I used a compound mitre saw for the first time!! And, it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be! It's all coming together and I can't wait to see it FINALLY finished. The lack of living space is starting to wear thin, as it's been super hot this week and we've spent most of our time inside the house. I'll keep you updated on our progress.

Have a great day!

We've hit.....

a snag in the demo department. My Dad, who has been helping us out with this renovation, is sick. Nothing too serious, but enough to completely stop work, as I'm not physically strong enough to make any more progress on the walls. There are some BIG boards that need to come down and I know my limitations!! I also know nothing about working with plumbing, so we're at a standstill until he's better, or hubby calls in reinforcements.

Sigh. So much for my 4 week timeline.

Have a good day.

A quick update.....

on the mess in the living room. Thankfully, the worst of it is almost over in that the lath and plaster is almost all off the walls. The dropped ceiling is down and the walls are opened up. I can see in my head how it will look when it's done and I'm excited about it!

Today I'm celebrating the 11th anniversary of the day I gave birth to my oldest daughter. I have a surprise girly day planned for just the two of us. Can't wait to get started!

Have a great day!

So glad that.....

this school year is over now. I wish that the kids on my bus had of behaved better to really make it a good last run, but alas, not so much. Maybe next year will be better.

Otherwise, I did some demo - ing today - the rest of the trim, most of the panelling and the dropped ceiling are all down now. And, now that school is out, I will be able to spend more time getting it done! I plan on a 4 week transformation. Hmmm, maybe I should take bets on whether or not that works.....

Have a good night!

I'm Baaaaack.....

after a week away. And, I only cheated a little bit in that I decided that I would keep up with emails while I was "gone", but only so that I wouldn't have to go through 150 of them upon "returning".

As an update, we are not very far along in the demo because neither my husband nor I remembered to call to get a bin to dump the garbage in during said demo, so we have to wait until tomorrow for that. However, we've totally cleared out the room now, and we've taken out the wall unit in the living room. As a plus, hidden under my stairs there is some VERY vintage wallpaper that just happens to match the colours of the rest of the downstairs of my house! I think I'll be saving some pieces of each pattern and framing them - they really are very pretty!

There's only 2 more days of school to go and then I'm done for the summer!! I can't wait to sleep in and enjoy my coffee in my pj's on Wednesday morning.

Have a great night!

Leaving my internet life.....

for my real one. This is just a temporary break, which will be starting this Monday. We are now getting really close to starting the demo of the living room. Our lives are about to be turned upside down for about 4 weeks. But, in the end, our living room will be much warmer and a little prettier, too.

I, however, think that my internet break will only last about 1 week or so. That'll be about all that I could stand! =D I'll leave you with a page that I made for Colour Combo #145 over at Color Combos Galore & the June sketch challenge over at Paper Poppy. A few posts ago, I mentioned that my hubby thinks of me whenever he hears Just Breathe by Pearl Jam. So, I made a LO that celebrated that! I used a photo from our 12.5 anniversary shoot, which was taken by the fabulous Stacy.


Have a great week!!!

My {real} Reality.....

Recently, Stephanie blogged about this on her blog. At the end of her post, she challenged us to do the same. So I am, and in turn, I am challenging you to try it as well. I really believe it will be freeing to admit that everything might not be perfect in your life. I have done something like this before via a challenge on Facebook, so I think I'll just repost that note, with some additions here :


25 Random Things About Me

1. I am terrified of the dark so there's always a light on somewhere at night.
2. I sleep with earplugs because I'm a really light sleeper, and any little noise will wake me up. This does not help with item #19.
3. I love cooking, but hate cleaning up.
4. I love to wear heels, but only do so once a week.
5. I quit smoking almost 11 years ago & I am very glad that I did. I have three children who need me more than I need to smoke. That was my good reason and remains so today. I never want to start that bad habit again.
6. I hate it when people chew with their mouths open. This includes gum. That's rude and gross to watch and/or listen to.
7. I hate it when people sniff their snot instead of using a Kleenex. That's rude and gross to listen to.
8. I am slightly obsessed with scrapbooking. I think about it a lot, but less now that I'm on a bit of a hiatus. I hope one day to be on another design team or published in a magazine. Or, maybe someday both will happen. That would be nice.
9. Sometimes I still miss high school, even though it was a weird and confusing time of my life.
10. Sometimes I wish I was single and childless. This sounds extremely selfish, but this is how I feel somedays.
11. I went to college to be a computer programmer, but I could care less about it now.
12. I hate that I have to work to provide the kind of education I want for my children. I wish that our government supported every school, regardless of which worldview they teach from.
13. I love to sing, but in church, the van and at home only.
14. I want to visit Scotland someday. Currently my sister and I have plans to visit when I turn 40. That's 5 years from now - I'm really looking forward to this!
15. Until very recently, I had 10 warts on my hands and 5 on my feet. The ones on my hands are gone now, but not the feet ones. They don't bother me much.
16. I really wanted to have another baby, and am secretly (although not anymore I guess) very angry that my husband said no. This is getting easier to deal with as time goes on.
17. I cannot stand to have doors open. I am always closing my closet and cupboard doors. I will get out of bed to close a door or drawer in my room. This also does not help with item #19.
18. I wear my jeans at least 3 times each before throwing them in the laundry. I think this habit is leftover from when I was growing up.
19. It takes me anywhere from 20 - 45 minutes to fall asleep. I hardly ever sleep well. I average about 6 hours of sleep a night and therefore I am tired all the time.
20. I love fresh flowers in my kitchen, but I only buy them when they are on sale.
21. I have 2 huge mugs of coffee every morning, but not when I'm traveling. I have the world's smallest bladder.
22. I brush my teeth EVERY time I leave the house. If I don't or forget, I feel dirty for the rest of the day. I think this is leftover from when I was smoking.
23. Most days I am bored out of my skull.
24. I love history. In particular, I love antiques (even more particularly, chairs)and always wonder what the story is behind the furniture.
25. Someday, I'd love to be a professional decorator. It's a bit of a pipe dream, but a dream nonetheless.

Does any of this list surprise you? It surprised me a bit too! But it's real and that's me. Hope you have a great day!

Booked a room.....

in this little inn. Our cousin is getting married later this month, and we're going to the wedding kid-free!! I'm really looking foward to another quick getaway with my hubby.

Have a great day!

A Hard Lesson.....

for my little one to learn. We watched a nature show on Discovery during supper last night and she learned that not all zebras are nice to babies that are not their own. She cried so hard, ran from the TV, and felt so sad for the little baby zebra. I had to try very hard not to laugh at her. Being five is hard! I think that she thought every real animal would be like they are in every Disney movie.....

But the truth, my little one, is that I didn't like watching it either.

Have a good one!

My husband.....

tells me that he thinks about me every time he hears this song on the radio :



Isn't that romantic? I think I might have to make a LO using these lyrics.

Have a great day!

"Reveal Day".....

is today! A few posts ago I mentioned that I was working on a project for Paper Poppy. And here it is! You can go here for more details and photos. I LOVED this kit & enjoyed making a project with the purpose of sharing with others. I didn't realize how much I missed being on a DT until I was asked by Aphra to be the guest blogger, and I really enjoyed making this little mini.

Thanks again, Stacy, for such beautiful, inspirational photos, and Ahpra for asking me to blog!

Have a great day!

Packin' it up.....

for a few months. We're insulating the room where my scrap space is, so no scrapping for me. I think I'm already starting going through withdrawals. On the up side, I'll have the time to take lots of pictures for scrapping when everything gets back to normal again. And, I'm thinking about painting the cupboard that I store my supplies in, so this gives me the time for that too! In the end it will all be worth it when I'm warmer this winter while cutting and gluing away. =D

My youngest started soccer yesterday. So cute to see all those little ones running around in a big purple clump. Her soccer socks are huge. I swear, they could go all the way up to her armpits. Wouldn't THAT make a funny shot! I think she's really going to like it.

Have a good day.

I'm still here.....

I've just been busy working hard on a project for Paper Poppy. Aphra emailed and asked me to be the guest blogger this month - I was SO excited about that!! Here's a quick sneak of what's to come :


Have a great day!

Happy NSD.....

to you all! Boy I wish that I could spend the day doing nothing but scrapbooking, but alas, it is not to be. Sigh. I will however, leave you with some scrappy goodness as I get ready to fly along to the next thing on the list of things to do.

This is a kit that I bought a couple of years ago from Ninabrook Designs. The CD with the pictures from Stacy came this week, so I've FINALLY been able to finish it!


This one is of my YDD and her beloved Bear, who recently needed surgery to correct an obvious problem :


And this one is for my brothers wedding album (which is still not done and they have been married for almost 2 years now. Sorry guys, I'll try to get it done soon...) I made it with my April kit from Paper Poppy - loved this kit! Go here and scroll down to find a great deal on past kits!

That's it for now - Have a great NSD!!!!!!

Just a quick post today.....

to share with you some of the shots that our FAB photographer, Stacy took this past week while we were in Niagara - on - the - Lake.

We love them all!! Thanks again Stacy for such a fun morning!

Have a great weekend!

Back.....

from the most beautiful vacation ever.

The most amazing food, beautiful accommodations, fantastic staff, and time to reconnect with my hubby.

Plus, an absolutely fabulous session with the most amazing photographer.

Well worth the money and time. I'm still there in my heart. Have a good one.

Home for the day.....

with a sick little man.

I'm ok with that. No watching the clock, no running out the door for co-op drving or a bus run later. A chance to be creative today. A blessing in disguise.

5 more days and then we're off on our vacation and photo shoot. I can't wait - we're REALLY ready for a trip away together.

I found a new kit club & so far I'm quite pleased with it! You can check it out here. So I made this LO with the March Main Kit - LOVED this picture of my ODD when I saw it.


And this one of my son with his new bike - I used the SCT July sketch for it :

Have a great day!

Back at it again.....

and still not slowing down. In fact, I think I'm even busier than normal!!

Next Sunday hubby and I are celebrating our actual 12.5 anniversary, but we're not going away until the week after. Why 12.5 you ask? Well,it's half of 25 of course!! (It's a Dutch thing). With the way things are going around here lately, I think I'll be really ready for a vacation then.

I'm hoping that the month of May will be better.

I'll leave you with a couple of projects that I made for the silent auction at my LSS's Crop for Cancer today :


Have a great week!

Officially on.....

vacation for the next 9 days!!!! Yep it's now March Break - no school, no work & sleeping in past 6am. Ahhhh, heavenly!! So glad since I've been coughing up a storm for the last 3 days. This is just what I need - a little R&R.

Have a good week all!

Spring Fever.....

has arrived in our household. I'm slowly (because my new work schedule is kinda wierd) but surely trying to get through the kids rooms and give them a good cleaning. The hardest part?? Getting them over thier packrat tendancies. With the little one it's easy. Toss it when she's not looking, and it's overwith. But the oldest two? It's like I've asked them to chop off thier foot.

This is when I wish that I had a maid. Sigh.
Have a great weekend!

So, I broke down.....

and borrowed my LSS's Cricut to do the title for this page.

LOVE how it came out & it totally solved the problem of the too few "e"s. But, I still won't be buying one, sorry. What I really want is a Cuttlebug or some such similar embossing machine; especially since I'm starting to get more into making cards lately.

March Break is coming up in less than 2 weeks and I'm grateful. I'm sick of the bus right now. This winter has been mild and there hasn't been as many snow days as there normally are, so the long stretch from Christmas til now seems even longer.

Less than 2 weeks to go....have a good one.

Everything.....

here is still the same. Still crazy busy & not likely to change soon.

I have realized that manufacturers of scrapbooking letters could probably make a killing if they just made packages of nothing but vowels. Can you imagine how fast they would fly off the shelves?? So, you may be thinking to yourself, "Whoa. Totally random thought there. Where'd that come from?" It comes from the frustration of being 95% done one beautiful double - page LO. One that has been sitting on my table for about 5 days. Why so long you ask? Because I don't have the right letters. And the ones I like? Not enough stupid "E"s.

Yep. Separate vowel sheets. My new necessity.

Have a good one.

Today is a quiet.....

day at home. Two days a week all of my kiddos are gone to school. I can have some quiet cups of coffee and watch HGTV all morning long with no complaining from the peanut gallery. I can read a book without being interrupted every 5 minutes. I should be cleaning a bathroom; but I'm not.

Sigh. I love Friday mornings.

Here's a quick peek at what I've been up to creatively lately.

My response to a challenge to scrap this picture from my sister :



And this one for BOS challenge #204 over at 2peas :

Have a great weekend!

Another snow day.....

today.

So grateful for this, as I am so very tired and slightly under the weather.

Not much new to report, we're still busy here.

Hubby and I have booked our weekend away & to get ready for it, I have started a new fitness regimen at the Y. I am going to be sore & tired for weeks. I am going to hate Ian (the person that helped me put my program together) by the end of it. But if all goes to plan, I'll look GOOD in the photos in April, and that's my main goal. I guess I should say that I want to get fit too.....but that would be a lie. =D

Have a great day.

This morning....

was a terrible morning. I'll admit, I knew what I was getting into when I became a parent. I just didn't realize that there would be days that I hated it. Why is it that your kids can push all 27 of your buttons at the same time??? So I had a meltdown before 7:30 am. I'm sure my husband thinks I'm nuts as he quietly watched me honk at my kids. So glad today is Friday.

Next week will be better. I think.

My OLW.....

for 2010. Love how this LO came out.

Have a great weekend!

Chicken Thursday.....

hee hee!!

Ever since that commercial came out I've been wanting to do that. =D

Anyways....

Ch{all}enge Masters (a really fab challenge community) is having a contest!! It's based on Ali Edwards tradition of One Little Word. My word this year is "adjust". Today I managed to get my hands on some Basic Grey Origins - I bought the card kit, and am re-purposing it - my newest favorite BG line, so look for the LO using my One Little Word to come soon!

That's it for today, have a great night!

2009 Top Ten.....

projects. I got this idea from Stephanie's blog - I thought I'd start the new year with a recap of my favorite projects from 2009.

For the better part of 2009, I was a part of the Design Team over at Sweet Pea Scraps. However, in August we got the sad news that Kristin and Julie had decided to focus on other things; and the kit club is no more. I truly enjoyed my time on the team, even though it was shorter than expected. It was my first one and I miss it! I got to "meet" some really creative, inspiring people, that thankfully, I'm still in touch with. And so, in no particular order, here's my top 10 Sweet Pea Scraps DT projects!

This one is from my very first kit, which I guess was really the Dec '08 one, but I love it anyways, and it was posted in 2009 ;). My kiddos decorating the tree in 2007 :

These next two pages are made from pictures that were taken at Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia, Canada. I made the trip in June for my youngest brother's wedding, and I did it alone; no hubby, no kiddos. A very significant milestone in my life, for so many reasons that I won't get into here. I loved this place & it's quiet serenity.

This one is me and my kiddos on Mother's Day; we've never done pictures together like this before. I think we'll do it every year from now on.

A favorite card in honour of Stellar Jenn ;)

My mother in 1970. She was supposed to only visit an aunt and uncle for a year and then go back to Holland to stay, and then she met my father. Due to Visa rules, they were separated for about 4 months while she went back. She sent this picture to my Dad while they were apart & I think it's gorgeous!!

My sister and I in 1977 wearing dresses my mother made us.

My favorite picture of my son when he was a baby. My sister took this one & sent it to me. It was just begging to be scrapped.

A project I did for the fundraising auction at my kiddos school. Luckily, I know both the couples that bought the windows, so I can see them again almost anytime! I loved doing this, I might do one for myself this year!

The last one & I think my very favorite of the whole year. This is a layout about my kiddos names (they each have 2 middle names), and I also made it to honour the people they are named after. Three of the people on the page we lost before my kids were born, but in 2009 we lost Grandma Bep, whom my youngest daughter is named after. It was also a very sad year for us. I am so glad she saw this page before she went.

It was fun looking back and remembering - I encourage you to do the same! Have a great night!