a scrappy weekend

This weekend was SkrapnChat's 1yr Birthday Crop and even Maribel joined in the festivities. She was so excited to participate that she cut her paper into such teeny tiny pieces that it would have been impossible to use for anything else other then fluffing up a fragile mailing package. Sooooo we tried again. Only this time I gave her one rule, no cutting past a certain point. Notice the fringe ;0)

 I also cut and glued some paper this weekend. Not as much as I would have liked, but I'm just happy that Mo and Jo decided to play along. Here's my favourite one I created during the weekend. My dad cracks me up and I miss living close to him so we talk all the time. Sometimes I just call to hear his voice, no other reason. Daddy's are special.

"This picture doesn't fool me. You may see a grumpy old man, but I see the gentle, witty softie that is my dad." 

I made a birthday card this weekend too and had this crazy idea that when you pull the ribbon tab, the candle will blow out. It was a bit tricky as I had no clue how or what I was doing but I managed to pull it off. I'm not too pleased with the bottom as I got a little over zealous with the stickles. Oh well...

 

I would say that it was a very successful weekend. The gallery was smokin' all weekend long and many laughs and fun was had by all.
Now to clean up my messy desk before my cats do....

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*psst* wanna see some sneak peeks?

SkrapnChat is having their 1st year Birthday crop this weekend starting this Friday at 4pm EST and it's going to be so much fun! There are tons of games, challenges, and make and take projects all weekend long. Oh and can't forget the chatter. Lots of chatter! ;0)

Here's a little peek at my challenges and make and take...

So remember to stock up on your fave snacks got my wasabi peas and diet coke and pull out your pretty paper and glue because it's a weekend full of creativity and inspiration!

See you there!

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we swore we wouldn't

But she loves them.

That’s right, I’m talking Barbies. Between Santa treating her stocking and a super sweet internet friend sending some Canadian Barbies (by the way Hollee, those are her favourites) to the ones Joe found at a flea market on the weekend, girl has Barbies!
And Maribel loooves her Barbies or “dollies” as she calls them. It is so cute watching  her play with them, she changes their clothes notice the many nakey ones and has little voices for each of them.

The Dark Side of Barbies...

But with these "dollies" come mini accessories. That's right, mini accessories that can criple a person when stumbling in the dark way late at night because they were thirsty and remembered they has some juice in the fridge but found something else instead via their foot. Yes, experience is speaking here...  So Joe and I got smart and put away all the little shoes and sunglasses titling them as "choke" hazards but we know what they really they are... “the softest part of your feet when applying your entire body weight on them” hazards. Ay ya yi!

Joe is on the hunt to find a car for her little gang of plastics. I on the other hand would like him to find me a pink corvette that I can sport to and from work. *sigh* One can wish right?

yeah right...


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custom photo sleeve

While putting my pages into albums I found I had some photos left over then I had printed but never scrapped. I didn't want to put them away in a box to "maybe" use at a later time, only to get lost. So I thought I would incorporate them into my scrap album too. Sure you could buy some already made but what's the fun in that? Plus I havn't found any that hold both a 5x7 photos and 3x4 on the same sheet, so... ha!

Here's what you'll need to get started...

Estimated Time for 1-12x12 sleeve 30mins

Materials:
-sewing machine***
-12x12 page protectors
-white board pen
-damp paper towel (for wiping off the wb pen ink)
-craft knife
-12x12 thick cardstock or chipboard insert either in white or light in colour
-cutting mat
-ruler
-embellishments of all sorts (optional)
***Note: If you do not have a sewing machine you can use a paper piercer and poke holes along the sew line and use embroidery floss and hand sew along your sew lines creating a unique look. Items needed for hand sewing are:
-paper piercer
-mouse pad or protective mat
-embroidery floss or yarn
-needle for sewing the embroidery floss or yarn

Step 1:

*Insert your white cardstock into the page protector (you can add another sheet or card board so you don’t cut through both sides of the page protector)
Step 2:
*using your white board pen and a ruler, measure and draw your sewing lines (You can use photos of that size as a template to ensure that they will fit after)
Note: If you are not using a sewing machine please skip to Step 6

Step 3:

*now take your craft knife and ruler to make your horizontal line cuts slightly below your sew line about 1/8”. Be careful not to rub off your newly drawn sew lines ;0)

Step 4:

*Remove the card stock from the sleeve

Step 5:

*Now it’s time to sew! I like to sew the horizontal lines first to prevent it from sliding around thus creating uneven lines and pockets. Then sew the vertical lines, wipe off the white board pen and you are finished!

Add your photos and memorabilia and enjoy your custom made page protector=) For this one I wanted to dress it up a little bit so I added the ribbon after it was all sewn but I was also careful not to sew over the opening to add pictures.

Note: Steps 6 thru 10 are if you don’t have a sewing machine or would like a different look

Step 6:

*using your paper piercer or sharp needle, poke holes along your sewing lines making sure you are going through both sides of the page protector. Remember to poke the holes over your mouse pad or cutting mat or your work surface would have been freshly irrigated

Step 7:

*same as Step 3

Step 8:

*remove the card stock from your sleeve

Step 9:

*thread your needle with embroidery floss or yarn of your desire and begin to sew through the poked holes.

Step 10:

*Wipe off the white board pen, add your photos and memorabilia and enjoy your custom made page protector=)

If you would like photos of how to do the hand sewing for this project, just leave a comment and I will be more then happy to comply =)

I really hope you enjoy making these and making them as unique and beautiful as you are ;0) I would love to see yours, please include a link to your sleeves so I can leave some love!

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serving is sweet!

Maribel and I had to do a little shopping and she saw the Sculpey clay display and thought it was play dough. Well it's sort of like play dough. I promised her some cupcakes and I just couldn't help myself, I stayed up pretty late making these calorie free cupcake charms and naturally I couldn't stop there hee hee.

On another note, I received a new church calling last week and today was my first day "on the job" so to speak. You may or may not know that we do not  have a paid ministry so what ever calling we get is purely voluntary. So imagine my surprise when I was asked to serve in the Primary Presidency. *insert stunned smiley here*

As I sat there on the sides learning and observing, the Spirit of the Lord was so strong confirming to me that Primary is where He needs me to be. I love children, always have and always will and my love for our primary is great. Each child brings so much to our ward and how blessed I am to have them teach me the things I need to keep close to my soul. I assure you, they are teaching me as I do my best to bring them closer to our Heavenly Father.

Good thing I chose Prepare as my word for 2010. Now to brush up on my public speaking skills as I have to prepare a sharing time lesson...any tips on how to keep the attention of 3-11 year olds would be greatly appreciated.  *insert nervous laugh-but really freaked out smiley here...heh heh...heh...*

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T.G.I.L.W.F!!!

I am sooooo ready for the long weekend!

You know those busy weeks where all of your deadlines run together and you have limited time for each task? Not to mention starting my week off by running over squirrel and crying about it all the way to work :'(
That was my week.

So for a well deserved treat, me and my girl Jen are heading over to our local scrapbooking store's Friday Crop after work for some much needed scrap therapy. I can't wait to cut and paste pretty paper together and call it art!

Ooo and I have a few things up my sleeve that I can't wait to share with you so stay tuned. But for now here is the LO I created for our Janurary Sketch at SnC.

Happy Friday!! Watch out for squirrels!

T.G.I.L.W.F =Thank Goodness It's Long Weekend Friday

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create

The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—

I cannot express the joy I feel when I see one of Maribel's artwork creations. I love that she loves to draw and colour and cut paper, it truly makes my heart sing. As long as she desires to create, I will continue to provide her the tools she needs to work on her mad skills ;0)


You can read the entire talk here.


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ponch row

Last night was my surprize Christmas present from my bff Jen and Thank You just doesn't seem to cover it. When we pulled into Universal Studios I still had no clue what we were doing or seeing until we stopped at the front entrance way. That's when I clued in. I about had a freak out right there but when she said we were "Front Row Center" that's when I lost it!!!

All I can say about the show is that it's FREAKING AWESOME!!! If you ever have the chance to see them, definitely do it. You won't be disappointed! But they do like to chew things up and spit them out. a lot. Jen and I both said "ewwwwww" several times in the show. Especially when they shot out mushed bananas at us. Lucky Jen got some in her mouth!!! *gag*

So a huge Thank You to my bestie Jen for taking me out for the time of my life!
I know it ate her up inside to keep it a secret from me for that long. *giggle* Me love you way Mucho!
And if you couldn't guess what show we went to see, it was the Blue Man Group. Heck ya!!!!


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hands are for hugging

No one said that motherhood was easy. In fact, I have never met anyone who said or even thought that. Well, I got my first real taste of parent responsibility this week.

On Sunday evening Joe and I were resting after putting Maribel down for bed watching TV and checking email, catching up on friend status' and feeding my farm animals on Facebook. I saw a post from a fellow Sunday School teacher that her son was pushed in Nursery and had a broken clavicle. Maribel also attends the same nursery with this little guy and my heart ached for him and his parents. I replied with my sympathies and asked if it was Maribel that pushed her little guy to please let me know.

Monday afternoon rolls around and I received a text alert that a facebook message came in from the mother. It was Maribel who pushed this little boy. My heart sank. I was devistated that it was my little girl that broke this boys clavicle. I was in shock, not that I didn't believe the mother, but that again, it was my daughter.

When I came home from work the first thing I did was call the mother and gave her my deepest appologies and offer any help or assistance that I could. I shared my concerns for what we could do to prevent an incident like this ever happening again and she also shared in that hope for prevention. I also asked her what had happened as we were not told anything that day other then what she had messaged me that Maribel pushed him.

There are two probable incidences, either Maribel pushed him down and as she did this she fell on top of his collar bone, or she was giving him a hug and then lost balance and fell on top of him ending with the broken bone. Either scenarios ended with my over 40 lb babyzilla landing on top of her little guy and a broken bone.

We have spoken with Maribel and will continue to work with her in teaching her that hands are not for hitting or pushing but for eating and hugging, but also that not everyone wants a hug. Our little girl is so loving in nature and I wouldn't change that for anything in the world. This is one of those things that is so unfortunate but a learning lesson for both parent and child.

Now to train her 'Canana' Papa to stop calling her "My Little Kung Fu Fighter" and we'll be okay.

>^..^<

prepare & discover

I am repeating Ali Edwards "One Little Word" challenge from last year to choose a word that will be a focus or goal for the entire year. As I have given up on resolutions, I began to think about this new year and what word was going to be my focus. I couldn't decide between these two and since they kind of go hand in hand, why not have both?

Prepare

I really struggle with prep work. I know a lot of things need it, but seeing that procrastination seems to have a bit of a rep for being on the negative side, (or this would be my word every year *blush*) I have decided to take this bull by the horns!  I pray that I can conquer this, or at least gain some life experience that I can share with my posterity ;0) I feel like this is the year for change and so I should prepare what I can for when it comes.

Discover

This year Joe and I have decided to discover  Florida and check these crazy things and places out for ourselves in this book. I mean come on, where else are you able to put your car in park and have it roll UP the hill??? That's right, only in the Sunshine State.

There are also so many things that I have yet to discover and have put off fo so long and this is my year to do it. But first I must begin my preperations and plans so I can achive these goals!

Our top 5 places
1) St Augustine
2) Key West
3) Spook Hill, Lake Wales, FL
4) Swap Shop, Sunrise, FL
5) Dinosaur World, Plant City, FL

~*~

And with it being not only the first day of the year, but also the first of the month, which means new challenges over at SkrapnChat!!! Venture on over and take a gander. Your bound to find tons of inspiration to get those creative juices flowing!

I received my Ali Edwards winning from her Blog I'm still smiling about it =) and I love them so much that I used them as my inspiration for my layout below.

Here are the paintings. I can no sooner choose a favourite as I love them all <3

The designer is DanielleQ and I definitely seeing more of these in my near future. Check out her shop, aren't they delish?


Happy New Year!

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