Then & Now

I actually finished one of the circle journals early! Melanie's theme is "Then & Now." I found a fun photo of myself in the early 80's posing with Scooby Doo at Carowinds and paired it with a photo of Trent & me with Mike and Sully at Walt Disney World last month. On each side I listed similarities and differences between myself as a child and as an adult. I stamped the words "then" and "now" using Making Memories foam stamps and a teal Sharpie marker.


Supplies: Miscellaneous black cardstock; Uniball Signo white pen; Bazzill edged cardstock; Making Memories foam stamps; Sharpie marker. Inspired by Dec 24th of dw2008.

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Craving #1

I've been fortunate that except for the week I dared to try taking prenatal vitamins (they are evil!), I haven't had any morning sickness. I've returned to my OB approved Centrum + folic acid to make sure I'm still getting those important vitamins so the baby & I are healthy but without the sickness. I do have some cravings and food aversions though. A bit more picky in what I'll eat at the moment. But one thing that has been ok regardless how I've felt - chocolate ice cream! Scoops or a shake - yum!!

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New Addition

I've been a bit tired over the last few weeks and began to slow down in order to get much needed rest all for this little one:


Trent & I learned on our anniversary that we are expecting. What an amazing and beautiful blessing!

Supplies: Bazzill cardstock (yellow); Archiver's cardstock (orange); Fiskars threading water punch; Making Memories patterned paper, clip and fuzzy letter stickers; QuicKutz die; Doodlebug Designs rub-ons. Inspired by Dec 6/7 of dw2008.

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Merry Christmas!

Looks like we made the nice list this year... :)


A very Merry Christmas to all! May you have a wonderful day surrounded with those you love. And be thankful for the best gift of all - the birth of Jesus Christ. Have a blessed day!

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Twas the day before Christmas...

The last few days have absolutely flown by. Our Christmas celebrations began last Saturday with a family gathering at Trent's parents' house. We enjoyed lunch, catching up and present swapping with his parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. It's so rare we all manage to be in the same place at one time and so much fun. Afterward, we hurried back to Raleigh to attend a dinner for my company party. By the time we returned home that night, it was almost midnight and we were exhausted!

An overnight rainstorm left us without power on Sunday morning and caused us to oversleep. Probably just as well as tired as we were from the day before. We spent the day at home cleaning up, finishing Christmas cards, and relaxing.

Monday and Tuesday were work as usual. I was so worn out Monday night that I went to bed at 8pm! Yesterday we caught up with a friend for dinner and a trip to Target for odds and ends.

Today we're thinking of catching an afternoon matinee. We haven't been to the movie theater since June when we saw You Don't Mess with the Zohan. I need to look up what's playing. I honestly am not sure what movies are out right now. Hopefully a good comedy. :)

Better get off this machine so that I can get a few things done (couple more gifts to wrap) before we head out. Have a wonderful Christmas Eve! And don't forget to track Santa tonight! He's already started on his trip... Norad Tracks Santa 2008

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PhotoHunt: Wide

"Not so wide" half Bugs from the Lights, Motors, Action! Stunt Show at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

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Friday Freebie - 12x12 Pinked Paper

Add fun edges to your digital papers and designs with this template. Use the entire sheet or just a strip. The possibilities are endless.

Click here to download the 12x12 Pinked Paper template

Enjoy!

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Early Christmas Gift

In the spirit of giving "memories," we pre-celebrated Christmas last night with my sister & her husband. The four of us decided earlier in the week to attend the NCSU / ECU basketball game together. The tickets became our Christmas gift to each other. Although only 3 of us were pulling for the winning team (go State!), we all had a good time and enjoyed quite a few laughs.

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Secret Obsession

My finished pages and tag for Terri's "My Secret Obsession" album. My two obsessions are dark chocolate peanut M&M's (maybe not so secret) and all things Pottery Barn. :) Love that PB swirl bowl I placed the M&M's in for photographing.


Supplies: Cosmo Cricket Cogsmo papers; misc. journaling spot; Doodlebug rub-on letters; QuicKutz Tangerine font; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed cardstock; Stickles; Micron black pen; black stamp ink pad; Bazzill cardstock; corner rounder punch; Come Unto and Pottery Barn fonts; American Crafts ribbon; My Minds Eye rub-ons. Inspired by Nov 28th of dw2008.

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Purging & Wrapping

Yesterday we did some much needed purging and filled 2 big boxes for Goodwill and 1 smaller box for electronic recycling. After dropping those off, we returned home and finally decorated our Christmas tree. It's only been in our living room for a week. ;)

Today after church I need to complete my pages for the latest circle journal so I can mail it out tomorrow. Then wrap and box a few gifts that also need shipping. I think Christmas is sneaking up on me this year. I'm *almost* ready.

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Disney On Ice: Worlds of Fantasy

Years ago Trent & I decided to give each other "memories" for special occasions. Rather than a physical item, we would go do something together. For example, each year for our anniversary we take a trip and for Christmas we give each other mini plan tickets for the Durham Bulls baseball games. My birthday last month was no exception. Trent gave me tickets for last night's Disney On Ice "Worlds of Fantasy" show. This year it featured the characters from Cars, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King and Tinkerbell. The costumes & performances were wonderful!

A little glimpse of the show:


Thanks, sweetheart, for wonderful night! :)

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Christmas 1987

Last night I dug through some photos and found a cute one of Trent & his sister from Christmas 1987. Using odds and ends from my stash, I quickly lifted an idea from Dec 4th of dw2008:


Supplies: miscellaneous olive green cardstock and felt tree; Basic Grey patterned paper; Autumn Leaves chipboard; Martha Stewart Crafts pen.

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Elf-ed!

I had no intention skipping out on blogging the last two days. I caught a nasty bug and didn't feel like doing much of anything except resting. A true sign I'm sick - no computer and no scrapping. At any rate, I began to feel much more like my old self yesterday. And, to start getting more into the holiday spirit (we still haven't decorated our tree *gasp*), I decided to "Elf" us:

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Have you been Elf-ed this year?

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Cookie Exchange

Each month our church has a ladies night out. Typically we meet for dinner at a local restaurant. Tonight we're getting together for a cookie exchange. I baked my favorite Christmas cookies to share - ginger snaps. After bagging, I added a little label to each made using Avery labels and a digital kit from Two Peas.


Supplies: Avery 2x4 labels; Rhonna Farrer's Holiday Polka Gift Package kit; Pupcat font.

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PhotoHunt: breakfast

My favorite recipe from the Deceptively Delicious cookbook - French toast made using pureed bananas. Yum!

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Happy birthday, Charles!

Hope you have a wonderful day! :)


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; KI Memories patterned paper; The Paper Company mulberry paper; Heidi Swapp iron on greeting.

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Martina McBride - timeless tour

I scrap as I'm inspired - which means sometimes I skip events until inspiration strikes. Case in point, last night I dug out photos from a 2006 concert we attended. The photos at 4x6 are a bit grainy. I cropped them to a smaller size to improve their look and used a sketch to help arrange them in a digital layout. Here's the end result:


Supplies: Paper 1 from Erica Hernandez's Martha kit; Office Note Rip from Rhonna Farrer's Office Supply Tool kit; staples from Craft Jar kit at Peppermint Creative; date brushes from Rhonna Farrer's Celebration kit; Ligurino Condensed, Caflisch Script Pro and Antique Typewriter fonts. Inspired by Dec 5th of dw2008.

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Thanksgiving 2008

Our family photo from Thanksgiving:


Supplies: Autumn Leaves and Wheat Pudding papers from the Plumberry Harvest paper pack at Peppermint Creative; tag & year date stamp from Rhonna Farrer's Celebration kit; Rhonna Farrer's TypeSet alpha; Come Unto Me font. Inspired by Dec 10th of dw2008.

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Thank You notes

I finally slowed down last night long enough to make a few birthday thank you notes and write them. I kept the design simple using supplies from my stash.


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View cards; K&Company patterned paper; Making Memories tiny alpha stickers. Inspired by Dec 9th of dw2008.

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Thanksgiving 2007

Even after creating a Thanksgiving template earlier this week, I got caught up in the festivities and neglected to take many photos. I decided to back up and use it to scrap photos from last year instead:


Supplies: Butternut Corn and Grape Jelly papers from the Plumberry Harvest paper pack at Peppermint Creative; my Thanksgiving 8.5x11 template; Jenkins v2.0 and Teen fonts.

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PhotoHunt: Metal

This week's PhotoHunt prompt immediately reminded me of an event called Canstruction that I participated in for 4 years (2000 - 2003). It's an annual design competition for architects, engineers and design school students. Groups build sculptures entirely from cans & boxed goods. The sculptures are on display to the public for a period of time before being dismantled and the food donated to the local food bank.

Here's a 2-page scrapbook layout I created several years ago about the 2002 competition. My team built the tug boat in the upper left.


Supplies: cardstock; Making Memories buttons; 2Ps Architect font; invitation.

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Friday Freebie - Thanksgiving 2008 template

In honor of Thanksgiving, I put together a template to help scrap those photos & memories while they are still fresh. This 8.5x11 template features 9 photo layers along with background, journaling strips, journaling and the "Thanksgiving 2008" title.

Click here to download the Thanksgiving 2008 template

Enjoy!

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Thursday Thirteen #2: Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving! Here are thirteen things I am Thankful for today:


What are you Thankful for?

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

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21

Happy 21st birthday to my brother, Christopher!


Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; miscellaneous black cardstock; Cosmo Cricket Cogsmo papers; Making Memories brad & metal rim; QuicKutz Tangerine font. Inspired by June 13th of dw2008.

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Random Photo Tag

Janet tagged me yesterday for a little challenge: Go to your pictures folder, select the 4th folder, find the 4th photo and then share on your blog. I have to agree with her - this is harder than it looks! LOL From My Pictures, I quickly hit on the 2004 folder, but inside were only more folders - no photos. So, I again selected the 4th folder (Cats) and again more folders! (Is it possible I over organize my photos?) After selecting the 4th folder for the 3rd time, I finally found photos and here is the 4th photo:


Little Chester taking a nap with Trent on the couch. The first couple of photos were a bit cuter. I imagine by this one he was annoyed with my photo taking interrupting his nap. :D

Sticking with the number 4, I'm going to tag 4 bloggers: Ter, Linda, Tina and Kerrie.

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NCSU / UNC game

Yesterday we traveled to Chapel Hill (a whole 30 minute drive) to attend the NCSU / UNC game with Trent's brother & wife. We cheered red. They cheered blue. The temperature was 40 at best, but the shade and wind made it even colder. Regardless the layers of clothes, we all had pink cheeks & noses when the game ended. And we all had good time.

The final field goal kick that sealed the game for NCSU 41-10:

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PhotoHunt: Reflection

Port Orleans Riverside Resort at Walt Disney World. I snapped this photo the morning we left.

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Christmas Cards

A couple of quick cards using scraps from the Christmas Card page I shared yesterday:



Supplies: Die Cuts with a View cards; Autumn Leaves patterned paper; Staz-On black stamp pad; Stampin' Up Happy Everything stamps; Making Memories sticker.

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2007 Christmas Card

Trying to find my scrapping mojo last night, I played around with our Christmas card from last year. The design is not my typical style, but I like the result and had a lot of fun.


Supplies: Autumn Leaves patterned paper & stamps; Hallmark card; Target felt flower; Making Memories brad; Micron black pen; Staz-On black stamp pad. Inspired by sketch on Nov 13th of dw2008.

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Things I've Done

I found this on Oceans5's blog. If you want to play along, just copy the list and highlight all the things you've done.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

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Happy

Over the weekend I finished my pages for the next circle journal. Toni's theme is "Happy" and she asked us to create a 2-page layout on what makes us happy and include pink. :)


Supplies: American Crafts patterned paper; Katherine Teague's Tabbed Alphabet; Making Memories letter stickers, brads, metal letter, and stitches; I kan' dee market tag; QuicKutz Tangerine alphabet; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed cardstock; Bazzill scallop edged cardstock; Autumn Leaves buttons; fonts: Pupcat, 2Peas Blocks - Scrapbooking, Hannibal Lecter, Another Typewriter, 2Peas Silly, 2Peas Stained Glass, Caflisch Script Pro, Gregor Miller's Friends, Anna, Tall Paul, and Kristen ITC. Inspired by Nov 7th and 28th of dw2008.

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Hello 30

Thought I'd welcome the day in style. ;)

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Family

We had a wonderful Saturday visiting with family. Our first stop was with lunch with Trent's grandparents. Friday was his grandfather's birthday and grandparents' 63rd wedding anniversary!


Mid-afternoon we drove a bit further west to my dad's house. We played a bit with the adorable kittens he and his wife are fostering. Aren't they precious? The little girl is on the left - very relaxed and loves to just sit and be held. The little boy is more adventurous and mischievous. I loved his curled whiskers.


My stepbrother, his wife and daughters were visiting as well. All except the little one went to a wedding last night so Trent and I helped Dad and Rianna babysit little Violet. Trent and I hadn't seen the girls since last Christmas. I went in to get Violet up from her nap and wasn't sure what to expect being a strange face. She just grinned and reached up to me. Aww. :)

As you can see here, she enjoyed playing with her Uncle Trent.


By the time we returned home last night around 10:30, we were both wiped out and crashed hard. But it was a very fun day and we were so glad to enjoy time with our families.

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PhotoHunt: Ruin

We took a cruise in the Caribbean for our honeymoon in November 2003. One of the excursions we went on took us to the Mayan ruins in Tulum, Mexico.

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Lilies

Still searching for my energy and mojo, but I managed to create one quick digital page last night using a template. I love the gorgeous blooms of our lilies. They were such a steal too - I found them on clearance for $1/plant!


Supplies: Press Plate (no. 2) template by Paislee Press; Sunburst paper from Tropical Popsicle kit at Peppermint Creative; Hyacinth paper from Tia Bennett's Spring Time Fever kit; Futura Bk and Hannibal Lecter fonts.

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Disney Mini Album

My Disney mini album which I shared a sneak peek of last week, is still a work in progress. The original idea came to me a couple of months ago when I saw the 7gypsies Envelope Album while shopping on Two Peas. I thought it would be fun to use an envelope per day to record our trip.


I added only a strip of patterned paper across the bottom of each envelope, inked the flap and added a number for the corresponding date in order to leave plenty of space for my journaling. I made sure to pack an archival pen with it so I could sit down every night and write about the day. To often I worry about my journaling looking and sounding "perfect." It was nice to relax and just write about the highlights of the day that struck me at the time.


Then, I used the pockets to stash bits of memorabilia from the day. For example, on the 2nd, we received surprise fastpasses to Mickey's Philharmagic that we didn't use so I stuck them in the album:


In the coming days, I hope to get a few photos printed to add to the back of each page and complete the album. I'll post photos of all the pages when it's complete. :)

Supplies: 7gypsies Envelope Album & photo turn; Making Memories star eyelet & puffy alphabet stickers; Creative Imaginations patterned paper.

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Ugh

I woke up Sunday morning with a sore throat. Felt worse as the day went on and attributed it to a possible cold. Afterall, I'd been on a bus and airplane only 2 days before so no telling what I had breathed in. Yesterday I was miserable to the point of calling into work and getting a doctor's appointment. Thank goodness because that "cold" is actually a sinus infection. I'm slowly finding relief with antibiotics and a neti pot (and, no, there will be no you tube videos of me using that! LOL - yes, I still have my sense of humor). Still feel like my head is going to explode. Going to try to make it a full day at work today. *fingers crossed* And tomorrow I'll share something much more interesting. Promise. :)

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PhotoHunt: Together

Trent & I at the Magic Kingdom celebrating our anniversary together. :)

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Disney Trip Envelope

An update on a project I shared last November. Prior to our 2007 trip to Walt Disney World, I made an envelope full of information to take with us.


It had 4 cards with details on front and back...

park hours/Epcot food & wine festival:


weather/rainy day activities:

FastPass rides/favorite attractions:

and stamps for postcards/addresses:

I wanted to reuse it this year and updated a couple of key sheets - the park hours and weather. The rest, for the most part, remained unchanged. Then I added one new card with table service reservations & a tip chart:


Supplies: black & white cardstock; Creative Imaginations patterned paper; Making Memories brads; Doodlebug rub-on letters; "You are Confirmed" reused from Disney print out

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