Copics: My LATEST obsession!!

Incredible Markers BUT HUGE price!! I'm wondering if they're available in Korea? They're imported from Japan and wonder if some of my friends traveling might be able to find? Anyway, just got a basic set as my xmas gift and soooo excited to try... yee-haw!! :)

Some great websites on the markers:

www.copicmarker.com
www.copicmarkers.com
http://www.oozak.com/

and this person's blog is AMAZING for everything Copic:

http://ilikemarkers.blogspot.com/

Paper Doll Set - TOOO FUN!!

Ok so my next venture of late was to do a Paper doll set with another MFT set. I love this set and so do my kids! They've had more fun coloring in the images and cutting out and playing with them. I stamped the images, colored and then laminated with my Xyron. Unfortunately the Basic Grey magnets aren't sticking real well as the magnets are so strong they slide off the laminate. I'll have to play with some of my different glues. All and all tho a super fun project.. but like doing anything with kids around.. already missing one of the pieces - oh well!! Will tackle next time we've got the stamps out.

Here they are:

Inside the tin.. extra dolls and their dress-up clothes! The missing piece which will hopefully show up is a super cute green tu-tu!

With Mermaid and bear outfit on

Outside of tin... doll is magnetized so can be removed.

Back into Paper Crafting!

And having a lot of fun! I go thru spurts and every year about this time, I jump back into paper crafting. I'm loving the MFT - My Favorite things stamps as it allows we adults to act like kids again and *color*!! :) Sooo much fun. I did my Flopsey bunny card with my Prismacolor pencils but I didnt have a smooth white cardstock so it didnt come out great. But all in all, was fun and will file and def use in future. I want to build up my stash of homemade cards so I dont have to do them at the last moment. So here's Flopsey:

Just catching up:

and yes.. lots to catch up on!

Only a few LO's... I'm pathetically behind! Have spent Fall doing some un-eventful invites to bdays and other get-togethers...In other words not a lot of interesting stuff to post:

Ok so here they are:

Artemia Quick page (page by artist Colleen)
"after5designs"
http://www.afterfivedesigns.com/
A Benefit Digi pack for a family hit with a tragedy!

Asian Artistry Kit from Jen Andersen (After Five Designs)
Japanese foliage stamp: Design fruit

A Little Journal I made for Ellie!

for school...

used a Hambley overlay, basic grey papers (Blush), a 7 gypsies "tied" kit and the 7 Gypsies gaffer tape, KI Memories Icicles (letters.. which seem to get harder and harder to find), Tiim Holtz distressing ink...fun. fun!

I continue to be sooo behind!

We learned about 10 days ago that Andrew's foster mother will be visiting the US. We're so thrilled for her and actually contemplated going as we so regret not travelling to bring him home. But for so many reasons feel it's not a good idea, and that's been hard. So I've spent this time, doing a photo montage DVD for her as well as a Shutterfly album of his second year. It was hard doing a pre-planned album (when you digi-scrap) in many ways but worked beautifully and got it done fairly quickly. I so hope we can meet her soon. The first LO is Anderews 21st month LO.. And yes, for anyone who follows I'm missing month 20.. have the pic and just need to do. The "Reflect" LO of my dd was also done (as was Andrew's LO) with a pic from our recent trip to Lake Tahoe. I used Randi Oh's beautiful "Flora " mini kit. It's available at Gotta pixel and eventually will be available at "A Cherry on top (ACOT)"... So that's the scoop .. For anyone wanting to see Andrew's photo montage will post that link too!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Thought I'd try to Catch up!!

Bad blogger that I am!! I have a few LO's I havent had a chance to post and some new ones I've recently done. Summer has just flown by and can't believe that school will be starting in several weeks. Of course our drama continues as we still have no clue where the kids will attend - major grhhhh!


The pics with Ellie vaulting/riding... Have to say - major mama brag! She hadnt vaulted in so long and yet didnt care - cause... it meant riding an extra day - of course that supercedes all else! She was amazing. She rides at Giant Steps - a therapeutic Equestrian program and it's been awesome for her.. for tone issues, receptive language issues and just general self-confidence! She and her riding partner rode in front of several hundred folks, for an Arts and Equestrian Festival, and I had no clue how she'd do! She was a HOOT!! She saw her regular classmates in the stands and waved every time they passed and after it was all done, she had to bow! I asked her "who told her to do that"? And she said "no one mom, you're just supposed to!"... OK.. should have known - LOL!!

Anyway, here are a few of my latest LO's

With Aggie our cat!

The Equestrian Fest.. first pic was during rehearsal!

I havent vanished :)!!

Just super busy with end of school. So finally as things seem to be calming down, I got a LO done. It was fun. It's kind of funky but was fun to play with some new things... This is Andrew's 18 month LO.. The type is way too small for you to read, but it should be ok once printed.. Just goes over his milestones...Most everything from Jofia Devoes' new Artist workshop kit altho some On Designs kit 15 in there, Holliewood designs and C. Renee for type, and boxes by Maya...

Happy NSD - Natl scrappin' Day

Well I think most are considering at a full-blown weekend with tons of sales. I've been so busy creating I havent had time to shop.. hopefully before midnight :)

Soooo.. the gal I (and many others design for) Randi Oh had this great template challenge on ACOT ( a cherry on top) so I did two layouts with the template.. Sooo fun. Think I'm def. addicted and can see now why folks love templates.. So here they are.. (dinner time here so sorry for the short post :))

Few more LO's - yay!!

Having fun with some new kits! Randi Oh has been cranking out the stuff over at A Cherry on Top and tomorrow a great collab kit will be released called: Cherry Bits... Very fun, whimsical! Love it.. the other LO was a continuation of scrapping some of last weekend's beach pics of Ellie, using Jofia Devoe's Sea oh Sea kit and Beautiful Day. VERY fun kits! :)

A new LO, Andrew's 17 months

and I'm so excited as I'm getting way more smiley pics again. Seemed he really went thru a phase and boycotted smiling! His hair, yet again, seems sooo long. You wouldnt know I trimmed his bangs last week for his court date! He's just got the most beautiful, fast growing hair!

This LO was done with ON designs kit 16. I'm toying with the idea of throwing my hat in the ring for their latest CT call altho I'm sure everyone and their brother will be applying. They've got an incredibly talented design team! I LOVE their stuff tho, so may try anyway!

Some Catching Up to do!

Well I havent updated in a bit! Just so much going on, not to mention some gorgeous weather that necessitates being outside. Andrew is sooo enjoying his new found freedom in the backyard and loves, LOVES the slide (hopefully new LO in a day or so on that!).

Anyway, did a few paper scrap cards I wanted to post and a LO I did of Ellie from pics of this past weekend. She and I did a long overdue, girls only day out and she chose the beach as the destination of choice. It was a great choice too as it was our annual Castles and Kites weekend. She's so much fun to photograph, altho still have so much to learn about my camera! Sooo here are the latest projects.. Trying to be quick so I can scrap a new page while Andrew sleeps! :)

A New LO with that cutie pie pic!

Spring has Def Sprung!

And we're loving it.. Great weather (for me) means better pics. I love the light this time of year.. Altho this next LO, my pics weren't the best but I still wanted to scrap! And some pics of Andrew.. we're in trouble, he can now easily get up the slide but then can't get down!

New pics....

Some New Pics..

will post for those who can't access other blog! Seems it's getting way too big!

beautiful day yesterday and a smiley pic from my baby boy!~

Andrew has the most incredible fine hair! I love it but I HATE that it needs to be cut so often. Last time at the hairdresser... well, it worked but he hated it. I will try to trim his bangs if I can get George to hold him still... I've done it once before myself, and it's better than taking him in. He's still so traumatized by any woman who seems to be "doing" anything to him... Sooo.. if you're a woman don't look lovingly at him and he'll do just fine (i.e. ignore him!)

The Jennufer Beal's Flashdance apparel - ok I'm dating myself!

Playing Soccer!

What a Gorgeous Day Yesterday!

and I got some great shots of the kids. And then this AM after thinking I'd use something with scallops or brackets with one photo, I saw this LO by Elizabeth Kartchner at Creating Keepsakes in their Products Guide Catalog, and decided to attempt to "lift" it. She's an incredibly talented artist (last year's Scrapbooker of the Year) and I didnt quite have the digital elements i wished for, but all in all, happy with how it came out.

This is another of Andrew. Mr Pouty face of late. He's so smart and he wants to figure everything out, but often it's all the dangerous things he wants to play with. He gets so frustated. So this shot yesterday was of him trying desperately to figure out the manual nozzle sprayer on the hose. He probably spent a good 30 minutes messing with that hose! And yep, in the end he had it all figured out! :)

I'm on a Roll!

Another LO, using another of Lorie Davisons' oh so cute kits. I'm not so sure I like this either but it's been super fun trying some new things! These were pics taken in 05, So Alex was 5 !

New LO, Andrew's 15 16 month update

Well I've been playing with some new techniques...not sure I like the finished result, but it was fun to do! Used the Lorie Davison kit again (used in Sam's LO below). It's called: "Bouncing Bunnies and Brownies" Kit. It's super cute and whimsical.

I thought of this LO because my son is at that age where he gets frustrated easily. He's super smart and knows what he wants and gets ticked when he can't have it! Of course he's often going for something dangerous! Toys that mimic the real thing just dont cut it. And having an older brother and sister, he's always wanting to do what they are.

My photos of him of late have been lousy as well as he's always wanting to walk or crawl toward me when taking pics. Need to just do a photo day and take a ton of pics! But when I saw this less than great photo, it so reminded me of how he is right now! Always wanting something just a bit out of reach and not super thrilled with it! :)

I ended up adding some text so it looks a bit more crowded than the one I posted on DST, DSM and CKMB, but I wanted to add a few other things that I want noted, so I'll remember that he was doing those things now!

Tub Time Fun!~

I'm sooo BEHIND, scrapping my baby boy,

but I did get another LO done today :) Def need to catch up on Andrew's monthly updates.

This is a LO featuring Elle in the Hot tub and loved the lighting, altho maybe the only one.. here it is:

I Lost My Best Friend Last Weekend

and a LO in his honor.. My best friend was a special boy named Sam, Sammy, Samson. He was a 9 year old Maine Coon Cat. I still can't believe he's gone. I have two other sweeties and they're awesome. But for whatever reason, Sam and I had this connection. He read me.. He knew when I was down (and I can't always say that about me for him :(....) He was just incredible. I have been so thinking back and my recollection is that this guy picked me - I didnt pick him, when he was just a kitten. He chose me out of a huge litter of kittens and therefore I chose him! :) We've always been super close, but he's always had little weird stuff going on.

We've spent the past many months struggling. Now that he's gone I realize the amt. of time I was attempting to feed him (at one point with a syringe).. how sick he truly was :(

Anyway, this is a LO I did.. I didnt start out thinking in this direction but in the end, when thinking about what the other side of the "rainbow bridge " might look like, I liked this.. Hoaky as it may seem... I do plan to do several separate LO's with poems etc for his scrapbook! Oh, how I miss him... If you're an animal lover, don't take this time for granted. It's so precious and I never in a million years thought I'd lose my huge love this early (he was just barely 9)..

Lois' Card Complete and in the Mail!

Inside of Lois' card
and a new thx you card

I did this for a friend and regret using the butterfly...gonna add some black brads (and removed the heart) and hopefully that will liven things up a bit!

Card for Lois

Well I've finished the majority of this. Will post pics of inside when done. Wanted to do something bright - came out VERY bright :) Oh well! I hope she'll like it!




Well I've finished the majority of this. Will post pics of inside when done. Wanted to do something bright - came out VERY bright :) Oh well! I hope she'll like it!

New LO!

Well I'm in the middle of several LO's so hopefully I'll have more to share soon. Andrew has been sick with the flu, and things have been super busy with school activities etc. I def need to take the camera to riding. Ellie started riding in an English saddle last week. I keep forgetting my camera. NOT that you know who will probably let me go and get pics (i.e. step outside the car for a moment :))... Still very clingy every since our V day date and now being sick VERY clingy and grumpy!

Pic of Alex I shot when I got pics of Ellie way below (Hints of Spring) .. such a beautiful day. I adjusted the color and settings in Lightroom, altho you can still see the "hint" of choc milk he had for lunch :)

Adobe Lightroom

Adobe Lightroom:

Well I'm so excited I finally got Adobe Lightroom. An awesome program that helps you edit photos. It's actually software for professionals. NOT that that's me, but I've had a lot of fun playing with the trial. I was very frustrated with Adobe tho and they lost the sale from me. I was attempting to get the educational discount and I understand that they need documentation BUT since we homeschool and didnt have what the wanted, I had to request stuff from the school and wait. In the meantime, I found this great online software discount distributor and ended up purchasing from them . They needed the name of the kids' school but that was it! Sooo yay.., Can't wait to play! Here's link to store (great CS)

https://www.softwareforless.com

Newest LO, Chef Alex :)

Well this is a super busy week and I HATE it cause it means scrapping takes a back seat. Hopefully this weekend, I'll get in a few new LO's. This is a LO of Alex cooking. He loves to cook and of late, his fav TV shows are Emeril and Rachel Ray! Love it. He comes to me and recommends recipes for us to fix :) Kit is from On Designs and is kit 14.. just a few other elements in there besides the main kit..

This is the Logo for the Cards for Lois campaign.. it's unfortunately not working for me to add permanently to my blog... Anyway, please email the gal below (message below) if you can!

Cards for a Cause! (PLEASE READ)

I was linked to a wonderful blog today of a great lady who is hoping to get cards made for her good friend who is battling Cancer. Something NOONE should have to deal with! The sick young woman is just 40 and has 4 children! I can only imagine! Even if you dont make your card, any card with your thoughts, hopes, uplifting message, will certainly be appreciated! PLEASE help if you can.....

Here's the link to the blog where this is discussed:
http://wilnaf.blogspot.com/

a Few NEW LO'S

Finally able to post those Baby Announcements I did for a friend! Isnt he just a total DOLL!!! :)?

Also finished a new LO using some new techniques for me... using all those blending tools I've never quite known what to do with :) I'm not sure I like how it came out, and sure wish I had Lightroom so I could have adjusted the color on smaller photos better but all in all it was fun to try some new stuff! Also some new products (Ephemerals) from Jofia Devoe! Love her stuff!