looking for a name

for this little guy!



She is thrilled with the new member of the household!!!

enjoying shades of summer

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scrapping til midnight

My latest scrappy adventure took me to Timeless Treasures where we had a little get together for my friend, Erica's, birthday.

It was extra special because my friend, Stacy, stopped by with my favorite little person. 


So glad to see Lisa, it had been almost 2 months.  that is way too long!  She was working away at the die cut station - you go Lisa!!!


Gloria is always so cute & easy going. 
She puts everyone at ease - an instant friend!


Elaine is always filled with giggles.  Lots of laughs with this one.


Cori is amazing!  I always love spending time with this girl.  She has such a bubbly personality - makes me happy just being around her.


Found a new cupcake place.  Island Cupcakes are sooooo yummy!  Had to bring a couple home for the family.  Will definitely stop in again on my next visit to TT.


I can't believe I just met Sandy less than a year ago,
but it feels like we have been long time friends. 



The birthday girl sporting her shades of summer.


So much fun to get together with this group.  No drama, just laughs, cupcakes, & a whole lot of paper flying around.

finished with my 1st printer's tray

I've seen so many gorgeous printer's trays out there & thought I am not talented enough to tackle one of those.  But when I saw the 7Gypsies trays at Michael's, I could not resist.  I grabbed a couple & brought them home, contemplated over what I was going to do with them & eventually my first attempt came out like this:

It came together pretty easily.  Of course a lot of it had to do with the fabulous products I used.  I started off with this gorgeous paper line by Echo Park.  It is called Be Mine & I love every single piece that is in that collection.  I think I must use a Martha Stewart punch somewhere on every project.  I love her punches & used a few on this project.  I also used dies from several companies including Sizzix, Spellbinders, Cuttlebug, & old school Quikutz.  I added a couple of embellies from Teresa Collins Crush Line & a little bit of Heidi Swapp.  Some ribbon, some bling, a few buttons & I'm done  :)

I made this project to display some of the photos of hubby with my girls when they were younger.  It seems he was always taking one or the other to a father/daughter dance.  I guess it is a little girl-ie, but when your a daddy to 2 girls, there is a lot of girliness in our lives.

catching up on some class projects

I have been taking some classes with Stash to Treasure & wanted to share some of my projects.   These are some layouts from a class taught by Jamie Dougherty a while back. 

Sugar & Spice
Some of the techniques included masking, misting, & overlapping colors.  I am really liking all the butterfly clusters.


White Pick Up Truck
In this LO I broke out the sewing machine & tore up some paper.  I also threw on some non-traditional embellies; an old tag from my daughter's jeans, & pulled out the gears from a Glue Glider refill.


Peace, Love, & High School
I love my sewing machine & got to use it again in this LO, printed on craft cardstock & canvas material- so much texture


Girls In Pink Dresses
The following LO included techniques with painting/masking, embossing stamped images, & misting.  I {{{heart}}} the pink & black combo.


Stand By Me
Lots of techniques incorporated on this LO.  Jamie showed us how to make a custom shadow box.  I embossed the gold tiles & even used household bleach to add another layer of dimension.


See The Beauty
It was fun getting messy with gesso.  Used my Sizzix dies to create my own letters & broke out some Martha Stewart punches.


It was fun working/playing with these techniques.  I got to try some things I wouldn't normally, but was still able to add my own style. 

on the soccer field

Due to scheduling conflicts, I have not been able to attend too many of BP's games this spring.  But when I'm there, I've always got my camera  :)  Even though the mom in me worries about her getting hurt, I have to admit I love to watch her play hard & feel good about herself.

Surrounded by Lake Forest, my girl is taking one for the team.


plotting a strategy


final score:  us: 2  them:  1

Yes, that's her, breaking away from the pack.

reviewing NSD festivities

Last weekend my friend Erica hosted a fabulous National Scrapbook Day crop.  It was actually National Scrapbook Weekend for us.  On Friday most of us met up at the hotel & went out to dinner.  Despite the long wait, my dinner was super yummy.  I took my camera, but didn't have a memory card  :(  So bummed, I missed a lot of good photo ops.  I did manage to get some good ones the rest of the weekend!

candy bar



















on a pizza run


group of troublemakers ? ? ?


she's all that!


fearless leader


partner in crime


croppin' cutie


raise your glass


Elaine is super sweet & hi-larious!


This girl does not take a bad picture.  My camera loooooves Cori  :)


Oh, and there were prizes galore - tons of giveaways.  My friend, Echo, won this Slice.  Yayyyy!!!!!


It was great to be with such a fun group! 

happy???

thought for today . . .

sharing some cha inspiration

Each booth was over the top amazing!  Moustaches were everywhere. 

Pennants & banners added to the happy, festive atmosphere.  Cupcakes, still popular. 

Printer's trays & shadowboxes were prominantly displayed in many booths. 

Inspiration came from: Donna Downey, Girl's Paperie, Tim Holtz, Nikki Sivils, Fancy Pants,

Crate Paper, Pink Paislee, House of 3, October Afternoon, Epiphany Crafts & more!