Why boys need parents

http://izismile.com/2009/04/07/why_boys_need_parents_39_pics.html

flowers have the sun...I have my mom

Did you know that Mothers day started over 150 years ago when an Appalachian homemaker named Anna Jarvis started a day to raise awareness of poor health conditions in her community? Despite popular belief Mother’s day was not made up in a Hallmark boardroom. I think Mothers day needs to make an appearance more than once a year!

The brown patterened paper in the background came from the paper wrapped around the flowers I bought at Costco. I love finding paper outside of the regular 12x12 stuff you find in craft stores. Hope this inspires you to look for materials everywhere you go. Happy Mothers Day to all the Mom's out there and thanks for stopping by.

how to be an explorer of the world

via (the barstool romantic)

http://thebarstoolromantic.tumblr.com/post/92653133

first time for everything

I know I said that I wasn't going to cut Parker's hair until he was two, it was time . . . time for at least a little trim. Don't worry we didn't cut off all the curls!

a not so simple farewell

Bob Dylan once wrote, “Come gather round people wherever you roam and admit that the waters around you have grown and accept it that soon you’ll be drenched to the bone. If your time to you is worth saving, then you’d better start swimming or you’ll sink like a stone…for the times, they are a-changing.

It sure felt like a big change in the scrapbooking world yesterday when the very last issue of Simple Scrapbooks came in the mail. Stacey Jilian wrote in her last editor’s note, “In the beginning there were many naysayers who claimed scrapbooking was just a fad. I didn’t buy it then and I don’t believe it now. Scrapbooking is an amazing hobby centered around the importance of memories and personal expression.” In the last paragraph Stacey talked about her commitment to doing her part to keep this industry alive and thriving. The times are changing and I hope that the scrapbooking industry keeps swimming…I know I will. My mailbox already misses you!

http://simplescrapbooks.typepad.com/

Timeless

Check out the fun layout my friend Sarah made featuring my super sweet boy. Who said you can't use flowers on a boy's layout? Fore more creative inspiration check out Sarah's blog: http://sarahstimelesstreasures.blogspot.com/

Layout by Sarah Ratchford

I love how she used stickles to accent the eyelets in the flowers!

Egg Hunt by Heather C.

Easter is in the air! I am super excited to share some photos of an Easter Egg hunt my dear friend Heather did for her daughter and some of her friends. She is amazing and I absolutely love her creative touch! Someday when I’m rich and famous I’m going to hire Heather to do all of my parties.

Thanks for sharing your photos Heather and come and visit us soon!

Peep S'Mores goodie bags

Egg Hunt banner painted with her daughter McKenzie

Bunny dip

Centerpiece ~ piece of sod, chocolate bunny and malted-milk ball 'robin' eggs



"Carrots" plastic wear



Bunny name tags for the kids made out of foammies



Easter cups



Peep Centerpiece

Sunny St. George

I just finished unpacking again from a super fun and spontaneous trip to St.George, UT. Parker and I also made an extra trip up to Idaho to surprise my Grandmother for her 79th birthday. Here are some of my favorite photos from our trip.

beautiful backyard view

I spy Parker


so cool


my favorite profile


sunny sand dunes

1 very cool kid

My cousin is graduating from high school this year and I am so proud of him. This layout is a little different from what I usually do but I wanted to make it as unique and cool as he is! He truly is the most kind-hearted kid I know and I feel so lucky to even know him.

Did you know that Prima also makes clear stamps? Loving it!

I try to break out the StazOn ink everyday, mostly because I love the smell of almonds. Thanks for stopping by!

Recollections Refugees

Layout of the day:
Thanks to all of the super creative ladies I scrapbooked with Friday night for helping me make this layout work!

Back to Bikram

Optimal health and longevity…who doesn’t want something like that? 105 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit room…who thinks that is a good idea? Several years ago when I heard about Bikram “hot” yoga, I thought to myself there was no way I would be able to handle stretching in a hot room for 90 minutes but you would be so surprised what your body is capable of. Last night I went to a class for the first time in 2 years and even though my body aches everywhere, I feel like a new person. Bikram is a genius! Namaste -"The light within me honors the light within you."

“Never too old, never too sick, never too late to start from scratch once again.” – Bikram

http://www.bikramyoga.com/

It’s all in the details

Julie Bonner is my hero! Here is my take on her sketch
Sketch #15 from 52 Sketches 52 weeks: http://picasaweb.google.com/dailyscrap/SketchLibrary


There are a hundred different ways to alter a scrapbooking embellishment to make it work for your layout. By simply using a black pen, pink stickles (glitter glue) and flowers; I altered some plan white premade cardstock letters. It truly IS all in the details; in decorating, in clothes, and in life!
Supplies:

Letters by Making Memories, flowers Provo Craft, black Zig dual tip pen, and Stickles glitter glue by Ranger

Sketch Starters

Be Sweet, Be Excited, Be Silly, Be Curious, Be Happy...Be Yourself.

I love starting off the creative process with a sketch! For this layout I used one of Becky Higgins Sketches from Creating Keepsakes: http://www.creatingkeepsakes.com/content/view/22991

Speaking of sketches...I discovered a super cool website called 52 Sketches 52 weeks. If you love sketches then save this site as a favorite! http://52sketches52weeks.com/ Also here is the link to their 2008 Sketch Library: http://picasaweb.google.com/dailyscrap/SketchLibrary Trust me on this one; you will want to stop by.

Boots, chaps and cowboy hats... nothin' else matters

Some of my favortie photos from our trip to Colorado:

cowboy up

How about them cowgirls

HB

Girls night out- 3D style

I heart my sister

Voeller, Swanson, & Shea

my heart is full

My sister-in-law is getting married this week and tomorrow we are off to sunny Colorado to celebrate this very happy day with her. Here is a sneak peek at the wedding gift I made.

For all of my 3 blog followers :) . . . I will keep you posted with some photos of our trip. Thanks for stopping by!

EK Success - Maple Lane Studio - 6x6 Keepsake with Drawer Easel Stand Shadow Box

http://www.specialmomentscards.com/home-decor.php

lucky friday the 13th

Five years ago today my husband took me to the restaurant where we had our first date (which happened to be on a Friday the 13th as well) and asked me to spend the rest of my life with him. It was the most thoughtful, funny, creative and romantic gesture ever.

Last night I was flipping through old albums and found the layout that I created of this memorable day. I really enjoy comparing my old layouts to the pages I create now. It is amazing to me how much scrapbooking styles and techniques have changed over the past few years. A part of me wants to go back and change a few things but I know that in five or ten more years it really won’t matter how great the layout is. I know that when my husband and my kids look at this page the last thing they will be thinking about is the design and that is what it is all about anyway!

my love, my joy, my friend

One of my favorite parts of this Valentine's day card is the ribbon I altered to tie the card together. I cut a piece of pink ric-rac in half and sewed it on top of the baby blue ribbon with a teal zig zag stitch. I love how simple details can add more texture and color to projects. Happy Valentines Day and thanks for looking!

P.S. Looking for cool ribbon? Check out www.ribbonjar.com. The shop by color navigation tool is so fun and the special collection jars are really cool.

I Heart U

With a couple supplies, some candy hearts, and wallet size photos . . . I altered a candy hearts box to make a sweet Valentine’s Day gift.

Supplies:
1. 2 boxes of Brach’s Hearts conversation candies
2. 1 piece of patterned paper
3. 1 pkg of small black letter stickers
4. 1 yard of ribbon and 1pkg of white cross stitch floss ( I love the American Crafts ribbon line)
5. Tools: scissors, glue dots, adhesive, hole punch & lighter (the lighter is optional and it is used to burn the edges of your ribbon to keep it from fraying)

Instructions Front:
1. Open up 1 box of conversation hearts and eat a couple of your favorite color (orange are my fav)
2. Cut out the (To: From: heart) on the back of the box and punch a hole in the top right corner *If you are going to make more than 1 box I would recommend using the heart as a template to make more hearts from another piece of patterned paper
3. Cut your patterned paper 1 ½ inches x 6 ½ and adhere it to the top of your heart box and wrap it all the way around until the ends of the paper match up
4. Tie ribbon around your box on top and in the center of your patterned paper making sure your knot is at the front top right corner
5. Add your tag by tying white floss around the knot of your ribbon
6. For dimension I use a glue dot and placed a conversation heart on the bottom left corner. The hearts are really thick so I just bit one in ½ (sounds crazy but let me know if you know of a better way to cut a conversation heart :)

Instructions Back:
1. Adhere your wallet size photo to the back tucking it underneath your ribbon *Use removable adhesive so that you can use your picture for your wallet
2. Cut out a heart from your leftover ribbon and adhere it to the top right corner on top of your ribbon (this is where the lighter comes in handy because once you cut a shape out from ribbon it can fray very easy)
3. Add letter stickers and use the rest of your ribbon as a fun photo corner

Feels more like April

I love having a warm front in February especially now that I am a mom of a boy who is happiest when he is playing outside. We have the best toddler friendly airport park close to where Parker and I have our weekly lunch date. I plan on keeping him outside until the wonderful 60's go away. Yeap...it's 60 degrees here today in Virgina and we are loving every minute of it.

A few days ago I downloaded a free version of photoshop and I have been playing with it ever since. There are so many different tools you can use to enhance your photos . . . like cropping out the person who accidentally stepped into the background of your favorite picture. I still have a lot to learn and I can't wait to sign up for a class! If you don't already have photoshop here is the link for a free 30 day trial: http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshopelwin/tryout.html

Things that make me smile

I wanted to use this piece of paper from Scenic Route for Parker’s layout, but I wasn‘t sure if the orange would work with the colors in his photo. For a quick fix I used a ruler and an exacto knife to cut around the layers that I wanted to keep…then glued patterned paper behind it. I also used the craft knife to cut out a small section of the blue star and used it as a photo anchor. I know it’s not a new technique, but I thought it was a super easy and fun way to alter a piece of paper to work with photos. I usually keep all of my scraps and use them later, but this time I was able to use the orange star as a template to outline the title…very handy huh!? I hope this layout makes you smile! Thanks for looking.