If you love The Girls' Paperie and have a Tuesday Morning near you...

RUN, don't walk to your nearest store! The Girls' Paperie is no longer in business so it's hard to find the older lines but Tuesday Morning has bagged kits for $19.99 that are worth double+!

I got the "Toil & Trouble", "On Holiday", "Tinsel & Twig" and "Paper Girl" kits. (thank you Daddy for the birthday money) :) :) :)
You get ALL the embellies and stamps for each line plus the paper!!! Can you believe that!?!
("Toil & Trouble" actually came with two of several of the embellies and "Tinsel & Twig" did not come with ANY paper but, it was still worth the price. The stamps alone retail for $10).

Anyway, check it out :) And if you are the Indy area, the Carmel location has the most kits left. E. 96th street has a few but Carmel definitely has the most (all except the "Toil & Trouble".. I took the last one of those).

Okay, I'm done enabling.. I'm off to try and scrap a little bit. Have a great night!

Happy Birthday to ME!!

Today is my 37th Birthday!!

And guess what!?, I'm okay with turning 37.
I've lost alot of weight and am starting to feel really good about myself. Better than I've felt in five years.
And my surgeon has given me the go-ahead to start trying for baby #2 next Spring. So I am anxiously waiting for that :)

Anyhoo, my friend Michele came over today and I scrapped my first LAYOUT in over seven months.
Not of Caleb though.. of Michele's son, Elijah.
What a cutie-pie he is, that Elijah.. SOOOOO precious, too. He is "Aunt Jenny's" favorite one-year old :)
It's a very simple layout using the Imaginisce "Animal Crackers" line and my Mickey/Disney Cricut cartridge.
Here's a cell phone pic (2) of the layout that Michele took.



And then here are some flowers I've been making a ton of (again, cell phone pics - sorry)



Sunday, Michele and I are going to take a mini card class at Archivers. (YAY) and on Aug 13th we are attending a twelve hour crop with my old NJS gang. Can't wait! I can't wait to get some layouts done! I got Caleb's birthday pics back today from the printer and can't wait to scrap them.
I hope everyone is having a great week. Until next time,

5th Birthday Pics

Well, I'm probably not going to get any scrapping done this week like I thought. Hubby went out of town and this weekend is a no-go. We have friends coming over for dinner and fun .. then of course church. And with only five days til my birthday, I'm hoping we get to go on a date for that :)

But I did make tons of handmade flowers with my friend Michele yesterday. Unfortunately, I didn't take any pics before I let her take them home. But I made them with this as well as just tearing paper into a spiral (I actually like the torn look better).

Here are some pics from Caleb's 5th Birthday party on June 26th. We had his party at this spray/fun park.. he loved it!
Hopefully I'll get to scrap these soon :)



"Woody" piggy bank from The Petrey's


I asked him what he wanted for his birthday several times and each time all I heard was a TRAFFIC LIGHT. So that's what he got (along with several other things.. mostly Cars 2 stuff)


Playing with the military vehicles he got from Mimi & Poppy (my parents)




The $15 balloons that last two days



Daddy pushing him and a few of his guests.. loved it!


My step-dad going down the slide. As you can see, Caleb thought it was hilarious!


"Woody" cake from The Cakehole in New Palestine, IN. I didn't get to eat any but heard it was scrumptious!




My Mom trying to recapture her youth


Step-dad & Mom


My friend Michele's little boy, Elijah. Caleb and Elijah have the same birthday, four years apart


Caleb and his Best Friend Jason Jr.
Jason was SOAKED from the spray park and Caleb hates being wet so he told him to stay away so Jason poked him on the nose.


And apparently that amused Caleb, LOL



Well that's it for now. Have a GREAT weekend and, STAY COOL!

I'm going to scrapbook soon....

Saturday Daddy took Caleb to the Indy Children's Museum so I worked on organizing my scraproom. I have friends that come over to scrapbook but we always end up scrapping on the floor or the table b/c my room was/is still a mess!

But I got alot done. WHOO HOO!

And yesterday, we went down to IKEA where I bought another VIKA ALEX storage unit as well as a shelf that attaches to my IKEA desk. That will free up some desk space for me :)

I still feel like I don't know where certain things are and so I'm going to have to spend some time labeling. But before I do that, I really just want to make a few layouts with some of the new paper I've bought in the past month. Other than cards, I haven't scrapbooked since December, I think? I really have the bug.. I miss it horribly.

Stay tuned. Barring unforseen circumstances like hubby going out of town for a week (like last week) or me going back into the hospital, I think some scrappy layouts will be posted soon :)

It's been a LOOOONG time!

Geez, it's been forever since I've been on here. I even forgot my login password, LOL.

Well, I haven't had any scrappy news to report. I went back into the hospital after the last visit I posted about. That time I had fluid on my lungs and was in there for three days. Then a week later an xray showed I had Pneumonia. I had that for two weeks. I was back to living downstairs that whole time and the scraproom is upstairs :(
This was all a result of the first hospital visit. They pumped me full of too much fluid.

So I pretty much quit scrapbooking. I never have time anymore. After losing 130+ pounds, all I want to do is shop and do things outside with Caleb. We also bought a membership to the Indianapolis Children's Museum so we are staying pretty busy.
I am hoping once the colder weather comes in, I will get back to scrapping. I am still BUYING scrap stuff... just rarely use it. I do take classes from time to time at Archivers though.. love that place. (and it's only 3 miles away!!!)

Caleb turned FIVE on June 27th. We had a party the day before at a local spray park. He wouldn't get in the water but he did enjoy the regular park next to it.
Here's a pic from that day. I'm sure I'll post more of the pics later or scrap them so you can see them.


Til then, have a great Summer! I know we sure are having fun!

Sometimes I just have to wonder....

Why ME, God?

I almost died over the weekend. On Wednesday the 4th, I went to the hospital to have yet another Endoscopy done to fix yet ANOTHER stricture. Well, my surgeon wasn't available and with hubbys work schedule like it is (he has to watch Caleb all day), I had to have it done by another surgeon.
Well, she tore me.
Which turned into a leak. Then renal failure, another surgery to fix the leak, three days in the ICU and then another four days in the bariatric unit. I finally got home Wednesday night and I am wiped.
No scrapping for me this month. It's all I can do to walk at this point. I am in SO much pain. Thank God for Lortab! (even though it just barely numbs the pain sometimes)

Please keep me in your prayers.

Just a quickie...

My little boy has been in the hospital for two days (nothing super serious) and well, I am bored out of my mind! So I thought I'd give a quick update.
The only scrapping I've done this past month is some card making. I've made tons and tons of cards for friends.. Thank You's and lots of Happy Birthdays :)
I fully planned to scrap but life always gets in the way. I've had two more Endoscopys and hubby has been gone a lot. And little Caleb has been sick, blah blah blah....

So, I guess maybe May will be my month???.... Hmmmm, we'll see.

Um yeah...

Okay. So I'm not really back to scrappin' like I promised. But I've made a few Thank You cards this week using the button studio from Epiphany Crafts. Love them! I'll post them soon :)
No layouts though. And I REALLY REALLY need to get back to cranking out the layouts. Who knew having an upstairs scraproom would be such a pain in the tukus! I can't scrap when I need to be downstairs monitoring what my 4.5 yr old curious boy is doing :(
And Daddy is out of town this week (pretty usual these days.. gotta make $$).

I'm also busy getting all of Caleb's "baby" clothes ready to sell at the Just Between Friends consignment sale that's coming up in a few weeks. That takes LOTS of time.


I just love this picture. It's from last year but it shows you my many chins. Yeah, I look horribly fat but that's okay. It shows the love I have for my son. So I love it. And guess what!? SEVENTY POUNDS of that fat is GONE!
WHOO HOOOOOOO! :)

This weekend we are going on a mini vacation/road trip to Michigan. Hopefully next week I'll get to scrap (fingers crossed).

See ya later alligators!

Well Hey There!

Hey hey hey!

I'm feeling a bit better after having two Endoscopys. The last one opened up the hole from my new stomach pouch from 3mm to 11mm so I'm not near as sick as I was. Thank you God!!
I'm still very weak though as I'm not getting enough nutrients/calories/protein in. They are talking about giving me a feeding tube but I am hoping to avoid that.
But on the upside, my infected incision finally healed and I have lost 52 lbs as of Wednesday! WHOO HOO!

So anyway, yesterday Caleb and I went to Archivers and I got some of the new Crate Paper TOY BOX line.
Oh my, it is SOOOOO cute!
I got the paper pack and the chipboard. I can't wait to play! This is SO Caleb. I should get several layouts out of this :)




Also, cute Caleb started playing Soccer on Wednesday. I couldn't get very good pics b/c of the lighting (indoors) but, I think I'm going to print a few of the better pics out on my POGO printer and scrap them next week using the new Toy Box line.


I am SO excited that I actually feel like scrapping again! YAY!!
I hope you all have a great weekend. It's going to be nice here the next few days. YAY SPRING!

Not doing so hot...

I thought I would be back soon but, who am I kidding.. things never work out for me like that.
I few days after I came home after surgery, I developed a "Seroma" under one of my incisions. Well, it became infected and basically, I am in alot of pain. Not to mention, this surgery isn't all sunshine and roses like the doctors want you to think.
I can't drink more than a small sip of water every few minutes or I get sick. I've been miserable pretty much every day since the surgery. I know in time it will get better and hey, I've lost over 30 pounds already and it's only been three weeks.
But at this point, to anyone who is even considering this surgery. I say DON'T DO IT. Maybe I'll change my mind in a few months.. we'll see.
Right now there is no scrapbooking in the near future and that really bums me out.

I do want to send some love to my friend Charlotte who sent me two boxes of Prima goodies this week. She is so awesome. I love ya girl. And thanks to all who messaged me love. Please keep praying for me. I'm really worried about this infection.
Thanks,

Well....

I made it through my surgery. I am still alive, praise God.

Ten days ago I had gastric bypass surgery.
My hospital stay and recovery have been very rough, definitely much worse than I expected. But, this too shall pass and I will get through this.

I did end up resigning from the Crop Chocolate design team. I just do not know that I will be able to fulfill my obligation to them. I wasn't able to in January and February doesn't look any different.

I WILL be back. I have tons of ideas brewing in my head and a weight loss album to make. Don't count me out yet.
I am now on a search for butterflies for my wl album.
The butterfly is the symbol of beautiful change. And that's what I'm going through :)

"See" you soon :)

LQQK!

Today I am the featured artist at Crop Chocolate dot com. Check it out!!
And... goooooo PACKERS!!


I'll be back. I have a Jan 31st deadline on a DT assignment. I'll try and post those before my surgery on February 2nd. Please keep praying for me that my surgery goes well. I'm scared.

I'm going to be gone awhile...

Hi all.
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas. We sure did. We went to Kansas City to see the inlaws and had a great time.

"Santa" brought Caleb the mixer he wanted. Although I think he mistook Caleb for a little girl, LOL. But Caleb loves it. Even if it's pink, LOL.



I just wanted to let you know I won't be back on here until mid Feb or the beginning of March.
I'm having surgery soon and will be out of commission for a while. I won't be able to climb the stairs to go up to my scraproom for at least a month.
Please check back here .. I promise once I'm back, I'll have lots of great projects to share :)
Love you all!

A Few More Things...

It all started with a trip to Archivers on a Friday. They were doing Make 'n Takes and I signed up to make a cute little pail for $5. I loved it so much, I bought all the supplies to make 4 more! Each one different, of course. These were for Caleb's teachers and I didn't want them to all to look the same.

This one has some cute chipboard and gems attached to the handle. I HAD closeups that somehow got deleted off my computer and the pail has already been given to his teacher, can't retake them (Grrrrr).
Products used:
DCWV Homemade Christmas stack paper
Bazzill cardstock
DCWV Christmas chipboard pieces
unknown gems
Bakers twine- Hydranga Hippo's Etsy shoppe (green), Making Memories Vintage Findings (red)
unknown "Goodies" sign .. I think it's from MAMBI but unsure
Stampendous short pail


This one is like the one I made at Archivers only, I tweaked it a bit.
Products used:
Jillibean Soup paper
Canvas star
Hero Arts snowflake stamp
All Night Media alphabet stamps
white Staz On ink
Icicle Stickles
Bakers twine - Making Memories Vintage Findings
regular brown twine I had in my stash
Stampendous short pail

And then here is one that was on the Making Memories blog yesterday.
Products used:
Making Memories Noel felt poinsettia blossom
All Making Memories paper: Noel Words, Noel Snowflake Argyle & Noel Green Snowflake
"Noel" charm - unsure; very old
Other: green ribbon, gems, metal jump rings, Pumice Stone distress ink
Stampendous short pail

*** Technique: Accordian flower. Very simple. Hand fold a piece of 1.5"-2" x12" paper several times into an accordian. Some people have fancy scoring boards, I did mine by hand so it's a bit "irregular", LOL.
Glue ends together then pinch to make a circular flower. Hot glue both top and bottom. Secure with circle centers.




And then here's the 12x12 layout I did of my little guy meeting Santa for the first time.

All product Making Memories Noel except for baker's twine (Hydranga Hippo's Etsy shoppe), kraft paper, gold star brad, staples, Stickles and distress ink.

Journaling is important to me. It reads:
"Being Autistic, we didn't know how you would do sitting on a strange man's lap.
So we waited until you were four to introduce you to Santa.
I was worried. I thought you might cry. Especially because there were so many people around and it was a little over-stimulating for you.
But you went up and sat on Santa's lap like a big boy.
You were quiet at first... Until Santa said the magic word - TOY.
Then you came to life and told him that you wanted a Buzz Lightyear computer and a (hand) mixer for Christmas!
We're so proud of you. And we're sure "Santa" will get you all your heart desires for Christmas this year. - December 4, 2010"


MERRY CHRISTMAS from my family to yours. Love you all!

Making Memories Guest Designer

I was FLOORED when I was asked to be a Guest Designer for Making Memories this month. Not only are they my #1 favorite scrapbooking manufacture (I own more of their products than ANY other brand) but, they wanted me to do a Christmas project. And I LOVE Christmas. So I said yes. DUH!
I had a bit of a problem finding the Noel line since I don't have an LSS here anymore and Archivers just had a few sheets of the paper. I guess it's a pretty popular line and being so close to Christmas, they were sold out of alot of it.
So MM was kind enough to send me some Noel product to work with and then guess what!? I found more of the line!
Where, you ask? Well, none other than my most favoritest store in the world! SUPER TARGET!! :)
Apparently they now carry Making Memories products. WHOO HOO.. You go Target! You ROCK!
Also, CROP CHOCOLATE had a deal on the Noel paper and Vintage Findings the other day. I got a few things :) LOVE CC!!

Anyway, here is the link to my projects on their blog. Check them out and leave me some love over there if you like them :)

Tomorrow I will post some more items I've made in the past few weeks :)
Til then, have a great Wednesday!