The Super Bowl's Coming!!!

Heather at Scrapdango gave the following challenge.
"The Super Bowl is coming up this weekend, NBA Basketball is in full swing (with the the Portland Blazers doing pretty well I might add), and just the other night I watched the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. So what type of sports or activities do you like to watch? Have any fave teams? Are you a diehard ________________ fan? This could also cover college sports. If you just don't do the sports thing, you can blog about what you do like to go watch (plays, musicals, etc.) Or maybe you're a football (or insert other sport here) widow, so you can blog about that."
I've been a professional football fanatic since I can remember. I know that my parents and my brothers love it too so that may be where I got it. Growing up in a suburb of Washington, DC, I am a diehard Redskins fan. For many years it was the only sports team in the area. I'll never forget the year they won the Super Bowl!! It was the mid-1980s and I had recently been laid off from my job so I was doing a lot of interviews around that time period. I remember sitting with my friends at The Peppermint Lounge watching the Redskins just obliterate the Denver Broncos. I think the score was 54-7 at the end. Every time "we" got a touchdown or did something really good we'd all scream and yell and celebrate. The only problem was that by the end of the game I was totally hoarse!!! My voice was scratchy for about two weeks and I can remember telling potential bosses in my interviews why I was having trouble talking. They all totally understood!
Now that we live in South Florida we enjoy watching the Miami Dolphins. Especially now that they have begun to actually WIN games!!! Sundays during football season are spent in front of the TV from 1 PM until the last game ends Sunday night around midnight. And Monday nights we pop back and forth between the game and whatever other show we want to watch. I love it!
And Super Bowl is so much fun! The commercials, halftime show, celebrations afterwards.... Only problem is, there's no more football until August. Oh well.... I can always scrap! LOL!

A Room with a View

My husband Steve has been very bored lately. He's always wanted to build a boat and has finally braved the cyber world enough to discover lots of boat building ideas, forums, etc. So when he said he wanted to buy plans to build a boat I said "Okay." (I'm the one who pays all the bills. He wasn't asking my permission really!) The plans arrive and he's very excited. He asked for a notebook, so I made him one with jump rings, paint and chipboard. Gotta love that scrappy stash!
Now boat building is not a cheap hobby nor is it an indoor activity. Come to find out, this thing's gonna be 6-10 feet wide and 24 feet long!!! (I need the porta potty and the cabin cuz I can get seasick sometimes.) Well, he goes off and gets his 2x4s to build the frame with and Saturday afternoon he is hard at work. And happy as a clam! Meanwhile, I'm scrapping away happy as a clam myself.
But then comes the problem. You see, we have wild parrots that come to my feeder every afternoon between 4 and 6 PM. They DON'T like odd things near their food and they're quite vocal about it too! Hehe! So after much squawking and fussing, Steve finally left his boat for a few minutes and came inside to let the parrots eat. (He knew it would make me happy too.) I looked out my window and said "Now THERE'S a picture for ya!" This is what I saw. First is the full view (these were taken through the screen so they're not the best quality).

And here's the current boat-building operation waiting for Steve's return.

The parrots are being very wary! They don't like the shed door open and there's new stuff in the yard!

Finally, a close up of the parrots. Aren't they just the coolest?!

Someday these will make a great scrapbook page! :) Happy scrapping!

61 Years Ago Today

I just want to wish a VERY happy anniversary to my parents, Mack and Betty, who are married 61 years today!!!!!!!!!!!!! This time last year I was anxiously awaiting the arrival of my parents who were about to have the surprise of their lives! You see, 61 years ago today in Fairfax, Virginia, my parents were supposed to get married with a nice church ceremony and a reception afterwards. But they woke up that morning to 3 FEET of snow on the ground! There were no snowplows or ice trucks back then. And the pastor couldn't dig himself out because his driveway was a steep uphill climb.
So my Dad was the hero! He dug out his own car, managed to go get one of Mom's sisters and her husband (Aunt Esther and Uncle Caldwell). Then they drove to the church and got Mom's flowers because as Dad said "She needs her flowers!" And after getting they dug their way into Mom's they dug their way to the pastor's house where they got married. Afterwards, they went to a local motel and had a cold meal because the kitchen had no electricity. The next morning they had chicken because the only place they could find with electricity hadn't received their groceries and that was all they had left. Poor things!!!
They started their lives in an 18' travel trailer. A couple of years later they bought a nice house and after 8 years of trying I came along. I was followed by two brothers within 5 years and that completed our family. We lived in that house until I was 11 when we moved to another part of the area. My parents are STILL in that house today! And they're still VERY much in love! This picture was taken by my sister-in-law with her cellphone in August of 2006 and was part of what started the ball rolling on their party! My sister-in-law realized that it was coming up on their 60th and so we all got together and planned the party they never had. We had almost 40 people from 7 different states come to celebrate with us! They were soooooo happy and surprised!

Dad's now 86 and has been in very poor health over the past few years. We have thought several times that we had lost him, but he stubbornly hung on and now with his fancy pacemaker has been declared by his heart doctor "One of the success stories." Hallelujah! Thank You Jesus!!! Mom's going to be 80 this year and still takes good care of Dad. They now have a granddaughter (my daughter Michele) and a great-grandson (my grandson Noah). They've also adopted Steve's granddaughter (Molly) as their own. My brothers have had some hard times but are now doing much better. They are currently both living at home with my parents being HUGE helps and a great comfort to me since I live so far away. Thanks Bill and Tony!!! I'm proud of how you guys have turned out! :)
So, today I just wanted to brag on my parents. They lived through the great depression, through World War II (Dad was in Alaska and England), through Korea and Vietnam and both Gulf Wars. They have seen good times and bad. They've seen this country change enormously and have a lot of stories and advice. I've been able to scrap most of those stories. Now I need to get their advice for the future generations and scrap it!! :)
Happy 61st Anniversary Mom & Dad!!! We love you both very, very much!

First Childhood Memory

Today's challenge from Scrapdango - "It is always to cute to think about the things you said or did when you were little. I would like everyone to blog about thier earliest childhood memory. Close your eyes and think back to when you were little. How young were you and what memory first pops into your head?"
My first memory isn't a very pleasant one. I was 3 years old and at my grandparents' house with my parents. They were farmers and had bees, chickens, crops and even chickens. Granddad went to collect eggs and I wanted to go with him. My mom was nervous about it because they had a really mean banty rooster and he'd attacked them before. So she told him he only way I could go was if he kept a really close eye on me. Well, we went down to the chicken coop and I guess he turned his head for just a second. The next thing he knew the rooster was on my head attacking me! He got me in my forehead and took out a bit of my ear lobe. I still have a scar on my forehead right at my hair line! Thankfully my ear grew back normally. I don't remember the attack, but I do remember being surrounded by people and the colors yellow, white and red. The red is obvious, and the yellow and white were from the gingham dress I was wearing. When I was a teenager I kept having nightmares about someone trying to chop my head off with an axe. Turns out that Mom finally figured out it was because the rooster had his head chopped off by my Granddad shortly after the accident! Once she told me the story I quit having the nightmares.
Not a very pleasant memory, but it's my first. Fortunately, I had a pretty good childood and never had any other serious problems that I remember. My two younger brothers and I have a LOT of stories about each other over the years!

ORGANIZATION!

One of the challenges this month on Scrapdango is with regard to organization. This has always been an issue for me. My style of organization has tended in the past to be organized chaos! I can remember as a child having a desk in my room that my mom would occasionally go in and clean it up. I always hated that because then I could never find anything. But I liked the way it looked. Somehow it's taken me way too many years to figure out how to do this for myself! :)
When I changed scrap rooms a year ago I decided that I would have one theme - A Place for Everything and Everything in its Place. I used the Scrapbooks Etc. workbook and book to set my room up. It took awhile to get it all done, but it was well worth the effort! It's easy to clean up after scrapping, it's easy to pack and unpack when I go to crops and best of all it looks nice when I'm finished.
However, my administrative area is another story. I have always hated filing. And I tend to just make little piles of stuff that at times have sat on my desk for over a year just getting shuffled and moved around. I don't like it, but that's just the way it's been. I think my mail problem is that I haven't found a plan like the SBE one to help me organize it.
So the other day I got determined. Remember my word for the year? It's MOVE! Spurred on by the fact that I needed to create one for my parents, I finally made a CD of assorted pictures for a digital picture frame my husband gave me last February. Long story short my camera and computer didn't "talk" to the frame and my camera card wouldn't fit either. So it sat on my desk in the box where it got moved many times. Now the frame is in my living room where I enjoy it every day! That (I hope) is just the beginning. Yesterday I went through a 3-tiered tray that was packed with papers, etc. I threw out a BUNCH of things that were no longer relevant, expired coupons, etc. In it too were a bunch of magazine pages that belonged somewhere else. So I put them away. And there were a few things that needed to be dealt with still. So I pulled them out. When I was finished, I was amazed at how empty the trays were! I also found a BUNCH of coupons for Linens & Things that never expire so I'll be sure to use those in the future.
Then I typed up a list of things I need to do and prioritized it. This really helps me to accomplish things quicker and easier. I've already crossed several things off the list! I felt like I'd accomplished another aspect of moving. And it felt good!
PLUS I have managed to somehow lose a whole 5 pounds since Christmas!!! Now THAT'S a major accomplishment for me! I am finding that the hormone replacement therapy I've been on for many, many years was keeping the weight on me. The down side to stopping the HRT is that I have severe and sudden mood swings. I'm working on trying to figure out how to take care of this problem. I think it's going to take a trip to the doctor. So this is going to take longer than I thought. But I am looking at it as a move to better health in more ways than one for me. Unfortunately I don't think I can handle dieting and coming off the HRT at the same time. So one's going to have to wait a bit longer. At least it's a move in the right direction!
Finally, I'm working on some really old pics and getting them scrapped. I've recently scrapped a lot of my daughter's old school pictures. Steve and I have been amazed at how such a gangly, odd looking young girl turned into the beauty that is my daughter! My plan is to do a LO with several small old pictures and one larger new one showing the difference.
So there's still more moving going on around here! A bit more exercise, getting healthier and scrapping those old photos. Maybe I'm more organized than I thought!

Calendar Project

As a challenge posted at Scrapdango.com and to help me keep to my word for the year ("Move")I decided I needed a calendar to keep me on track. So I cut some chipboard and used the Jan 08 Sugar Kit from Scrapdango and created this project. I used MS Outlook to create the calendar pages.
I cut the title using my Cricut and then offset the cardstock shadow. Then I used a black pen to outline the letters and make them stand out more. Finally I added Stickles and Crystal Lacquer to embellish the front cover even more. Inside is my blog post about my word for the year.

Each month has a divider that I cut from old manilla file folders. I used the postage stamp style stamp so that I can record my weight and other pertinent info for each month on at least one side of each divider. I had fun playing with all kinds of brands of stamps - Technique Tuesday, Basic Grey, Close to My Heart, My Sentiments Exactly and more...






Thanks for looking and happy scrapping!

The Big Reveal!!!

As I posted just before Christmas, I was selected as the January Guest Design Team member for Scrapdango.net. This is the kit I was given - it's the Spice Kit which is typically a boy-related theme. I was to create 3 scrapbook projects (one of which needed to be a two-page layout), and one altered project or mini album or 2-3 cards.
Here's the content list:
Featuring My Mind's Eye ~ Dreamy 2 Brilliant
12x12 Patterned Double-sided Scrapbook Paper
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "A Boy Is" My Guy
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "All Star" Starburst
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "All Star" Twinkle Twinkle
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "A Boy Is" Reach for the Stars
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "So Handsome" Positively Plaid
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "Boys Only" Paisley Power
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "So Handsome" Little Star
1 sheet MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "Boys Only" No Girls Allowed
12x12 Cardstock Scrapbook Paper
2 sheets Hazard
2 sheets Green Tea
2 sheets Carob
Embellishments
1 sheet Pink Paislee Holly Doodle Alphabet Stickers in Orange Crush
1 Prima Clear Stamp in Postage Alphabet
1 Magistical Memories Round about Arrow
1 Magisitical Memories Tab Trio Star
8 DCWV Grade School Chipboard Photo Corners
Handful of Buttons from Buttons Galore in Orange, Spring Green and White
1 MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "Boys Only" Frame
1 MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "So Handsome" Journal Card
1 MME Dreamy 2 Brilliant "A Boy Is" Journal Card
1 yard May Arts Teal with Circle Ribbon
1 yard May Arts Green and White Check Ribbon
First I created this layout of my grandson Noah in my washing machine and called it "Maytag Man". It's a cellphone pic that my daughter took so it's not the best quality, but a cute one that had to be scrapped! I painted the included star with orange paint, then sprayed it with Glimmer Mist. Once it was dry, I used a pen to create the border and write Noah's name and the date on it. The tag was not included in the kit. I painted it white, inked the edges with Cat's Eye chalk and then used the included letter stickers to make the title. I also added some of my own fibers as well as using the included blue printed ribbon.

Then I created this two-pager for Noah's album called "Cuzzins". The pics are from my parents' 60th anniversary party last year. The other little boy is my cousin's grandson. Noah and Colin had never met before, but they were instant friends and hated parting at the end of the party. I just LOVE these pics! I cut the star circles from some patterned paper included in the kit. The chipboard stars are inked with Cat's Eye chalks from Colorbox. The unusual spelling of the title is because I didn't have enough of the letter "S" to spell it properly. Kind of adds to the childlike feel of the page! :)


Next I created this one-pager of how Noah redecorated my newly remodeled kitchen while I was at a crop one night last year. The arrows were included in the kit. I cut patterned paper to fit the shapes and then glued the paper onto the arrows. Then I sanded and inked the edges. The journaling box is an adorable acrylic stamp that was included in the kit.

Then it was time to create my altered project. This was the hardest for me as I'm not much of an artist when it comes to stuff like this. But I really like how this one turned out! The pictures are of my grandson Noah and his Nana who took him ice skating for the first time last year. I used a felt star border left over from another Scrapdango kit. I needed to change the color so I took a stamp pad and inked the felt. It was messy, but I like the end result! The rub-on and the chipboard circles are from another previous Scrapdango kit. They worked perfectly on this project!

After creating all of the above, I still had a lot of product left over. These kits are SOOOOOO awesome! So I decided to keep creating. These pictures are of my brother shoveling snow in front of my parents' house in Virginia in 2005. Everything on this layout came from the kit (except for the pen and ink)!

I am working on another altered project with more kit materials, but it's not finished yet so I will post another time.
Finally, I would just like to once again thank Carrie and all the other Design Team members at Scrapdango for choosing me to be the Guest Design Team member this month. I have never been so honored in my scrappy career and it was soooooooo much fun! If you're looking for a positive, challenging scrapbook site to join, THIS is the place!!! And in February they are having a HUGE challenge and contest with lots of prizes and fun! C'mon down and join us!
Happy Scrapping!!!

Silly Mockingbird!

It's 11:45 PM and there's a crazy mockingbird in my front yard! This poor bird has been singing almost non-stop night and day for several days now. Steve and I finally decided that it must be the full moon. He goes through his entire repertoire over and over again. The poor thing exhausted himself so much a couple of days ago that he'd fall asleep for a little while and then would start up again with a half-hearted effort. Today he was pretty quiet all day but about an hour ago he just let out a whole-hearted string and hasn't stopped since! Steve finally couldn't take it anymore and went out to the tree and shook it. Wonder how long he'll be quiet? He'll probably move to another part of the yard and start all over again. Poor thing!

I Exercised Again Today!

Woohoo for ME! :) I was almost instantly sore again and I'm sure it will be a few days before my muscles calm down again. Which only reinforces the fact that I need this SOOOOO badly! DH came home about 3/4 of the way through it and was really proud of me. This video really is low-impact but HIGH on using those muscles! It's perfect for me! And again, I did the whole thing! But took it MUCH easier today. Hehe! It took a week for my muscles to finally quit hurting last time. So I'm only going to do it twice a week until I get in some sort of shape. Then I'll add another day.
I also uploaded a few more things in my Shop Handmade store. The link on the home page of this blog updates whenever I add things so please check it out!
I'm continuing to work on my word for the year - MOVE. Other than the exercising and opening the store, I've also cleaned up a few things that have been lingering on my desk - one was a year old! I made myself a list with urgencies and due dates and I'm ticking them off one by one. Not making many deadlines yet, but it will come. The important thing is that I'm continuing to MOVE! :)
Happy Scrapping!

Please Check Out My New Online Store!

One of the things I wanted to do this year was set up an online store. I've been thinking about it for awhile now and knew I needed to wait but didn't know why. That is, until I opened the latest issue of Scrapbook Trends! On the first page I found an ad for Shop Handmade.Com! I checked them out and have been watching them for almost a month now. I'm IMPRESSED!
So this afternoon I set up a store and uploaded a few things. I have lots more to upload, so check back often! And please be sure to let me know what you think. I welcome any and all comments and/or suggestions!
Here's the link:
And be on the lookout for my January Guest Designer projects! The reveal will be VERY soon! I had SUCH a great time working with this awesome kit!
Happy Scrapping!

I DID IT!!!

Yesterday Steve and I were doing some shopping in Target and I spied an exercise band with a Pilates-style DVD for $12.99. We looked at each other and said "YES!" (I still haven't told him about my word for the year. He just wouldn't understand if you KWIM. Hehe) Now normally the thing would sit there for awhile (maybe months or years) untouched. However, we both recognize that we're severely overweight and out of shape. I'm especially out of shape because I spend so much time in front of this computer or scrapbooking. Sooooooooo..... Today I decided "I'm not waiting for him. I'm gonna DO this thing!" I got the DVD started and immediately paused it. I need two things besides the band - a mat of some sort and more ROOM! After trying a couple of things and pausing the DVD a time or two more, I finally moved a piece of furniture and started in earnest. (Gently and VERY timidly to be sure!)
Well, the next thing I know the mail arrives. I'm expecting my Guest Designer Team kit for Scrapdango so I paused the DVD and looked. No kit. Drat! Started the thing again and a couple of minutes later I hear a box literally thrown onto my porch. WHAT?! Thinking again that it was the kit, I went to the door again. Nope. Just half-melted wonderfully homemade goodies from my SIL in Alaska. NICE! But wait, I'm supposed to be LOSING weight here! Hehe! And how nice (NOT) of the mail carrier to just throw it onto my porch! GRRRRRR!!!
So I start the thing one more time. A couple of minutes later my phone rings. It's my DD who's been really sick lately and not able to talk much. Thankfully she's feeling MUCH better but still sick. Another pause and stop. The 40 minute DVD now has taken over an hour, but .....
....drumroll please .....
I completed the whole thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY FOR ME!!!! I was so proud of myself. I put the furniture back, start to put the band away and suddenly realize that I can literally feel EVERY muscle I've just worked! UH-OH!!! Needless to say I popped a few Advil really quickly! Hehe! I don't even want to THINK about how sore I'll be tomorrow! Still, I'm very pleased with myself and am determined even more than ever that I need to MOVE more!!! So on Wednesday, I'll be back in front of my TV with band in hands and DVD playing working those poor old muscles one more time.
Oh and I did another MOVE today. I was running out of space for my scrappy albums. So after my exercising and realizing I'd better keep moving before I was really sorry, I moved some books to another room and made room for a bunch of scrapbooks in the living room. That led to moving some pages from one album to another which always leads to more moving. I finally quit after about an hour. But again, I'm pleased that I'm working on all those little things that have been sitting here waiting to be done.
It feels good to MOVE! Hehe!

Happy 2009!

Well, it's already several days into the new year and this is my first post in 2009. My how time flies! I wish everyone out there a wonderfully blessed, prosperous and healthy new year!
One of the challenges in the scrappy world these days is to pick out a word for the year. I've never really seriously done it before, but this year I felt a need to choose one. What's my word for 2009? MOVE! This word has several meanings for me. I'm seriously overweight and need to exercise. MOVE! We are more serious than ever about building the lodge in Alaska. That means we have to MOVE! And in many ways - we have to sell this house and MOVE. One of our options would be to sell this one and get an apartment while staying here until we build up enough funds, etc. to start the build. That's one MOVE. Either way we need to MOVE to Alaska to complete the dream. In the process of getting there and building the lodge, we need to do a lot of research. That means I have to MOVE off the scrappy sites (and scrappy table) and do some searches on the internet. So many things to do still! Once we start building, there will be many, many decisions to make. That means my brain will have to MOVE a bit faster than it does now. Hehe!
And finally another type of MOVE. I have a boatload of pictures that are printed and yet to be printed that need to be dealt with. Either I have to scrap them or I have to put them in photo albums. Whichever is done with them I have to MOVE a lot of pictures from their current spots.
So you see, my word MOVE means many, many things. My challenge now? It's to MOVE to the other room and enjoy the last NFL games of the year! Maybe it will make me MOVE off the couch as I yell at my fav teams! Hehe! MOVE Miami Dolphins into the next level and into the Super Bowl and WIN, WIN, WIN!!! Go FINS! :)
Happy Scrapping!