Thankful heart

I had a great Thanksgiving with my family today! It was so special, because it was the first time in a long time that my mom was able to be there. She usually has to work. We had my family over, (minus my brother and his little family,) and my husband's family, which consists of his Mom and Dad. My husband is an awesome cook! He made a very memorable meal. We all loved the sweet potatoes, even those of us who HATE sweet potatoes usually. We all ate in my workshop area, since that's the only place we could fit everyone! We don't have a dining room. With the carpet and faux fireplace, it was really cozy!

I'm thankful for so many things! When I start listing them to myself, I end up going on and on for 20 minutes! My newest blessing is my new niece! She made me an aunt for the very first time! She is a tiny, little bundle, weighing under 5 pounds right now! Alas, I haven't seen her as she lives all the way in Texas! Thank God for pictures and the internet! I have already gotten to look at photos from this very Thanksgiving day! Even through the computer, I can see that she has changed so much the week since she's been born!

As I celebrate my birthday tomorrow, I look back and marvel at all the changes that have happened in my life this year, and thank God that I don't look as old as I am!

Scrap Happy!

Breaking albums

OK, here is my confession...I bought albums on sale at Michael's right before I committed to being a consultant. This is just 2 years ago. I bought these albums and gave them as gifts to my Mom, Mom-in Law, and my sister that Christmas. Every Christmas, I get copies of my favorite pictures of my daughter from that year, and I make pages for them to add to their albums. I'm the "professional", so they always have me put the pages into their albums. This means I'm not constantly taking pages in and out of these albums, they have only been touched 3 times at the most. Can you believe that these books are literally falling apart?! Sure, they were cheaper, but no wonder! They are junk! I was putting some of the pages in this year, and the strap that runs along the back of the album ripped! This strap is made of paper. Creative Memories makes an album that looks just like that one. Their straps are plastic. They don't rip! Another pet peeve of mine is the plastic straps in the cheaper books. These straps are part of the binding and hold the album together. The plastic sticks to the page and warps the page protector. Creative Memories uses plastic straps that are buffered. I never knew why they were buffered, but it must be so that they won't stick to the page protectors. Creative Memories costs more, BUT you get a better product, a lifetime guarantee, and they test their products extensively. It's worth it to me! Anyway, I had learned my lesson, and knew to be very careful when putting the other paper strap on. IT BROKE, TOO! AAAAAG! Now I have really learned my lesson, and I am just going to buy a Creative Memories album and replace it!
So, let's review. I bought the albums to save money, and ended up having to replace them in 2 years. I ended up spending more money than if I had just purchased CM albums in the first place!

Tip of the Day: If you want to save money on albums, ask your consultant to give you a call any time she has specials. Buy all the albums you will need over the coming year at that time.

Scrap Happy!

Busy weekend

This weekend, I had a poorly attended workshop, (hey, it WAS light up night!) and a vendor fair. I've only done 2 vendor's fairs, and I've come to really enjoy doing them! I set up my table with some supplies, and then my cutting tools and everything I've brought for me to use. I sit there and I scrapbook! Sometimes I get so engrossed that I don't even notice that someone is at my table. This is actually a good thing, because they don't feel like I'm watching them. I figure this also shows people how easy scrapbooking is! Best of all, I get to scrapbook! I'm now almost done with August. Since it's now the middle of November, this means that I am still quite a ways behind! I want to try to get all caught up before my trip to Disney World in December.
At the Vendor fair, I booked 2 parties and had several people interested in my making their albums for them. I also was able to meet several scrapbookers who didn't have a CM consultant. I felt like it was a day well spent!

Tip of the day: It's always a great time to sign up to be a consultant! The sooner you do it, the sooner you start buying your supplies at cost! Most of the "work" I do as a consultant is done at home. I hardly do parties or shows at all. I just love my job! Does it show?

Scrap Happy!

Grown-up scrapbooking

I realize that not everyone who scrapbooks has children. So, I thought I would think back to three years ago, (which seems a long time ago) and think about what I was scrapbooking. I remember being completely caught up! I wasn't really however, because just when you think you are caught up, you realize that there is another album you could be working on! My goal in the year I was pregnant was to scrapbook my whole life up to that point. I completed 2 albums, as well as keeping my current album caught up. I scrapbooked my childhood, and did an entire 12x12 album of the years my husband and I dated. I left work a whole month before my daughter was due and spent a lot of that time finishing those albums. I also had insomnia, so I often scrapped through the night. I finished my goal just prior to her birth!

Before I had a child I took pictures of our everyday life. My friends, sporting events, home improvement projects, vacations, my dog, my friend's kids....Pretty much the same as I do now! Now the difference is that most of my everyday life revolves around my daughter, so she makes her way into almost every picture! And I've found that I often don't bring my camera with me if I didn't bring my daughter with me! That's not necessarily a good thing! I take photos to remember these times and events I'm living. When I look back, I should have pictures of the events that she wasn't a part of! With the way I'm losing my memory, I'll probably look back and not remember that I often left my camera at home, and I'll think that I didn't do anything without her!

Tip of the Day: Take your camera with you the next time you go out without the kids!

Scrap Happy!

Sports!

This year, we have been blessed by getting to go to a Pirates game, a Pens game and 2 Steeler games, the latest one being this week's game! And all but one of them have been absolutely free! Over the years, I have taken photos at all 3 of these venues and created layouts highlighting these pictures. I have a few tips on how to preserve these photos. These tips can also be modified for theater and concert fans. Be creative!
Remember, if you are going to any sporting event, act with class, come dressed to support your home team (even if you have to borrow a jersey or team shirt from a friend. It will make you feel like a true fan!), and cheer at the top of your lungs!

Tips of the Day:
* Use the team colors to decorate your page.
*Use the team's symbol to inspire you, using the colors in it, or even drawing the symbol right on your page!
*Include the tickets in your page layout.
*Make a little pocket by using a CM sticker pouch and fill it with confetti, either from the actual game, or make some of your own!
* Write down what the weather was, where you were sitting, any crazy things that happened and don't forget to include the final score!
* Be sure to capture the whole day, from tailgating to where you went to celebrate after the win.
* Ask someone outside of your group to take a photo of all of you together.
* Take pictures with the field behind you if possible.
* Take a photo of the stadium! You might feel like it will be around forever, but it won't!

Scrap Happy!

Christmas Cards

It's almost time to start addressing those Christmas cards! Are you looking for a different idea for your Christmas cards this year? I was! I found several ideas in the Family Fun magazine. I decided to make a collage of pictures showing our year. I laid out the photos and some memorabilia on a flat surface and simply took a picture of it. Some photos I included were photos of Daddy and daughter in the snow, our family at the beach, my daughter and her best friend, tickets from some of the sporting events we went to, a picture of one of the newest members of our family, Aunt Sara, a sea shell, Mickey trinket, and a picture of our dog, Elmo. I took this to the store and had photo cards made. These are our Christmas cards this year! It's similar to the idea of writing a Christmas letter. I liked it because I was able to incorporate pictures and trinkets, giving it a 3D feel!

Tip of the Day:I used at least one photo from each season to show how my daughter had grown during the year. For the best result, use close ups. Use photos that are very clear and bright. No dark pictures! Set up your collage outdoors for better lighting, but don't have it in direct sunlight. I set my collage up on the floor of my porch and stood over the picture to take it. I zoomed in a little so that the photos would be easier to see.

Scrap Happy!

the once a week scrapbooker

Lately I've been feeling that if I haven't scrapped, what is there to write about?! As a result, my blogs have been here and there, nothing very dedicated. I finally scrapped yesterday! I had a call from a customer who's more like a friend, and her and another friend came by to scrap with me! I got caught up in what I was working on, and couldn't stop, even after they left! I am pleased to announce that I have finished the second book for the 10th grader! It feels like I've been working on it for a long time, because I have been working on my daughter's as well. I like it and I hope the family loves it! Now on to book #3!

Tip of the Day: I'm forced to admit that often when I want time to scrapbook, I just start an endless parade of DVDs for my 3 year old. She is only right in the other room, but I feel guilty when she watches more than one video a day. Another option is for me to let her "scrapbook" right alongside me. She has her own scrapbook; an inexpensive paper one with a leopard print cover that I bought at Walmart. I give her stickers, markers, scissors, paper and sometimes doubles of my pictures, and let her have at it. This way we're spending time together and she is doing something somewhat productive.
Scrap Happy!

My 50th blog!

HI! I just had a day filled with scrapping! Today was the second of my Croptoberfests and I was able to meet my goal of having 12 people attend! Four of the girls came to both, because we had so much fun! Today, I made muffins and my mom brewed coffee to start everyone's day off right at 10am! We accomplished a lot in the 9 hours we were all together. The conversation was awesome! I love hearing the stories of how everyone met their husbands! Some shared pictures of their kids 20 years ago, and pictures of them going to their first dances and the prom. We praised the work of artists able to tie the right colors together, use scrapbooking tools in unique ways, and finding that perfect page element to tie it all together! We helped each other with page ideas, and shared our supplies. We ate together, laughed together, and congratulated the mother who didn't even shed a tear as she completed the pages of her youngest daughter's first day at college! My daughter "scrapbooked" with us for awhile, even sticking a few surprise stickers on Gramma's page when she wasn't looking! Through the door, I had the most beautiful view of the neighbor's tree in all of it's golden-orange splendor.
(sigh!) It was the perfect day!

Tip of the Day: I'm stealing this from a friend who was doing this at my Croptoberfest today. She is just starting a photo album for her daughter. She is alternating every page with pictures of her daughter on one page and her daughter's husband on the facing page. She'll do this as they grow up, until they meet. It is very sweet, and something you may have heard of, but I just wanted to remind you that you don't need to worry if your kids are already grown and you haven't made them an album yet! It's never too late to start!
Scrap Happy!