Thursday, December 1, 2011

Celebrating What Matters...

...or, as many of you scrappy people call it: the "December Daily."

I started a December Daily.  Last year.  It's still not finished.  Sound familiar?

How about the 2011 challenge I took with a dear friend.  Michelle, I tried to keep up.  I really did.  But I have fallen short of my 365 scrapbook layouts.  So very short. 

And my promise of more blog posts.  But the laundry.  And the picking up and dropping off.  The music lessons and the swim lessons.  The church commitments and the school functions.  Dinners to make and clean up after.  The grocery shopping and the bill writing.

And, on top of it ALL, I have come down with bronchitis.  Again.  Times 5.  Yes.  5 times this year.  I am run down, out of breath (literally), and out of energy.

And yet, I hold onto my dreams.

This week I have put all of this aside to celebrate what matters.  And what matters to me is my family.  My son.  My husband.  My little niece and (now 2) nephews.  My dearest friends.  And of course me.  The only things in my life that truly matter. 

Today, as I celebrate the 25 Days of Christmas, I take time to reflect and refocus what matters most in my life.  I celebrate all that makes my heart sing.  Today, that something is my son.


Merry Christmas to all those near & far.  I wish you the best of holiday seasons...and hope all your dreams come true!

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Returning After A Long Hiatus...

Have you ever wished for a "break?"  A chance to just walk away from your life to find yourself?  Sometimes, if we are lucky enough, we get a chance to do just that.  For me, it was a hard decision to leave behind a job that I loved, people that I cared about, and a profession in a field I had always dreamed about being in.  But I was stretched too far, broken in so many places.  I had lost who I was.  My family was hurting on the inside.  And so, I took a break.

Fast foward 4 months.  Reconnecting with my son this summer has been the greatest gift in my life.  I can honestly say this has been the best summer of my life.  We've gone on trips, we've gone to the ocean, we've gone to the movies and the drive-in, we've kayaked, gone on picnics, taken long nature walks, been to amusement parks, sailed on tall ships, planted a garden, and through it all, we've gotten closer than we've ever been.  My greatest gift has been falling in love with my boy, all over again.
He makes my heart melt!

Now that I have re-organized my life, I'm getting ready to jump back into the crafting scene.  My love of crafting extends way beyond paper, and now I have the time to dedicate to all my crafty desires.  I will be launching (or re-launching?) my two crafty companies...Canterbury Village and Just Scrappin' Happy this fall.   Just Scrappin' Happy will showcase my love for scrappy goodness and all things paper.  Canterbury Village will be my home for stitchery, wood, pillows, prim and more.  I hope you'll follow me along on my crafting adventures...I'm excited to return to the craft scene!  It's been long overdue! 

Here's a sneak peek of what I started working on today:

Tea dyed grunge tags, complete with a sprinkle of cinnamon.  These beauties will be pinned to my pumpkin pillows.  The muslin is soaking a a bath of tea as we speak!  Get ready friends...I'm back in the saddle again! 

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Wishing For A Dream Come!

I did it!  I applied for the Design Team at Jillibean Soup.  This would be a dream come true for me.  I have loved this company from the very start.  I only hope that they find what they are looking for in me.

Want to know what my samples were?  Here we go:

I couldn't resist this picture of Katherine playing in the rain.  I've gotta get me a pair of those boots..for sure!

I didn't have red Jillibean letters, so I used white ones, which I painted to match.

I love Jill's trademark flower. 

And how cute are the girls in their cowboy hats?  Now all they need are horses!

These corrugated letters are my absolute fav!

The Trail Ride is always worth the wait!

I'm sending this card to Kelly Jo tomorrow. Shhh...don't tell!  :)

And this card is going to my friend Karen...who took good care of me these past two weeks with my pneumonia and bronchitis.  Think she'll like it?

I made a couple Christmas items as well, but didn't enter them as part of my application.  I'll show you guys just the same:

Joy.  A sweet little wall hanging.

I'm telling you...I LOVE these letters!

Such cute snowmen.

I even doodled with my favorite white pen!

Well crafty friends...I've got to head back to my studio & pick up my mess.  And then it's off to bed to catch up on some reading.  Wish me luck...pretty please!  I hope Jill & Kimber like what they see!

Saturday, March 5, 2011

5 Weeks of Illness!

That'll set ANYONE back.  Just a bit.  It's been a struggle trying to keep up with school work, work work, housework, homework, and whatever other kind of work I've had to contend with.  I finally see the light at the end of the tunnel: my breathing is getting better day-by-day, I am getting lots of rest, and I am starting to resume "normal" activitites (on a limited basis, of course.)  Things like vacuuming the rugs, doing laundry and cleaning the bathroom tire me out quickly, so I try to do them in limited intervals.  I am on Spring Break from school this week and am hoping to get back to my regularly-scheduled-life soon!

In the midst of all my suffering from bronchitis and pneumonia, I have some fun creating new projects with the February and March "Company Kits" from NESC.  Here were a couple of my layouts from the February kit:
Just before I became sick I had purchased a new leather journal and had begun drawing sketches for new layout designs.  I was feeling a little stuck when I went to create my 1st sample, until I remembered my sketches.  I love how it turned out!
Bo Bunny's line was amazing to work with.  I especially liked the dimensional stickers included with this kit.

The Thickers alphabet allowed me to create my own title.

I am just starting to get comfortable making single-page layouts.  I take so many pictures that it makes it hard for me to focus on only one.  But, sometimes that perfect photo comes along, and you want to showcase it.

I used one of the mini album pages as the base for my embellishment focus, creating this multi-layered accent.

I don't like my pages to be flat...I can always been seen with a good supply of foam pop dots!

For the March "Company Kit" I was again compelled to create a single-page layout because of this photo of me & my son.  The photo (from 2006) captures our relationship to this day!

That boy tugs at my heart strings like no one else can!  He is my reason to get up in the morning; he puts the smiles on my face.  I loved showcasing this photo with the beautiful pastels of the March kit.

I had fun playing with the ribbon, gathering and ruffling as I went,

I used my Fiskars punch to add flair to my layering.  "Do You Remember" is the PERFECT title for my page!

I plan to spend some more time this weekend playing with my fabulous kits from NESC.  I imagine many of the ladies who buy the kit will be just as inspired as I am.  I'm also going to play with the new Berryliscious line from Imaginisce and catch up on some of the Designer Series kits I have purchased.  Leave me a message...I would love to know what you are working on!



Saturday, January 1, 2011

Enough Said!

Found this quote while blog-hopping tonight after dinner.  I thought it was way better than anything I could come up with on my own.  Thanks Becky Higgins: you've said exactly what I was feeling.


Happy New Year everyone.  I wish you happiness & peace...today & always!