Fave Clothes

Why do I, as of lately, sit down to do my fave five's at lunch time? All I can think about is the food that is beside me. It's probaby because I am unable to eat and eat alone. I have to do something else. Watch TV (which no longer holds my interest durning the day), read or surf the net. Since Monkey decided to start sleeping through lunch a couple of months ago, I'm on my own.



Seeing how I found a pair of capris in my closet this morning I didn't know I had (and that fit! There's lots of pre-Monkey clothes in there I'm holding onto with the hopes I'll fit in them again someday); I'm going to do my faves on clothes.



1. My fave shirt in my closet: My Curious George shirt. I love the retro George that I grew up with. Sure, the newly designed George is cute. 80's style George just rocks more.

2. My Roots Travel Pants. Seriously the most comfortable pair of pants I own. Take yoga pants, make them even more comfy than they already are and you have these pants.



3. I love my terry capris! Mine are yellow, but I wouldn't mind a black pair. I love to wear them for Monkey and my daily walks.



4. I don't own this dress, but majorly love it!


5. Hoodies. I love my hoodies. I have 7, I think. I'd wear a hoodie every day if given the chance.


And those are my faves for the day. Not my top faves, but faves anyway.
And to sum it all up...
Because I know you're all nosey out there...
My lunch was a sesame seed bagel with light herb & garlic cream cheese with carrots and cucumber slices on the side. Delicious! Which just so happens to be Monkey's newest word craze. Everything gets a "it's stinky" when I'm cooking and a "mmmm...delicious" when he eats it.
Until next time...

Card Making --- Me?

Some of you know that I am not a cardmaker.

For those who didn't know...You do now.

I have only made two cards before. Both were for challenges. Both sucked; big time!

Well, I went ahead and made a card. It will be mailed out of someone. I guess the desire to make someone else happy was what I needed to make a half decent card.

Check it out...

Here's the outside of the card. Where the tree and house pop up over top of the card is actually cut out. You can see the cut marks on the inside (or the back) of the card. I used a mix of Sassafras Lass (the clouds), Fancy Pants (the house and birdie), October Afternoon (apples), Pink Paislee (sign) and cardstock (scraps, so I'm not sure which brand), cardboard, chalk and ink.

Here's the inside of the card. Notice the cut marks?

I tried to make another card. This is as far as I got:

The owl is actually sitting in a cicrle cut out. So when you open the card he's still there. I had fun with the owl. I stamped him and then painted him in with markers. Yes, painted. I coloured marker on my paint tray, dipped a brush into water and then swirled it around the marker on the tray. Turns it into a cool, almost water colour, look. But now I'm stuck to what else to add to the card. Something will come to me, I'm sure.

Now making these cards has turned my tiny area into a distaster zone! I have a very small area to scrap in. About 6 Jen-Feet by 8 Jen-Feet. Jen-Feet are measured by my own two feet. I wear a size 8 (roughly). You can do the math if you want to, or just take it from me; it's a small space. And it houses everything. My desk, chair and supplies.

This is the mess these cards made on my desk. And it's still a mess. I'll have to clean up before going back to working on some DT assignments.

Until next time...

Notebook and Fave Friday

Welcome to Friday!

How's your day going so far?

Since I'm eating lunch while typing this, I thought I would do a fave five on food.

1. Sesame Chicken. How the heck did I get to 27 years old and never had sesame chicken before this week? I like chicken. I ~love~ sesame seeds. Combine the two and how could it not be a hit with me? (photo credit to soocool.com)

2. Hot Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches. It's a Rachel Ray one. It's simple to make and very good. Like a hot wing on a bun. I omit the blue cheese sauce, but Steve loves it. I dip mine in sour cream.

3. Garlic Bread. I could eat garlic bread every day of the week. I also decided I couldn't find a garlic bread that was garlic-y enough for me. I started making my own. And it's really easy too. Too easy, actually. I'm not too sure why I never bothered before. Weird fact about me: I don't like melted cheese on my garlic bread.

4. Pesto Tortellini. I had never had tortellini or pesto before I met Steve. It was the first dinner he had cooked for me. It not only was delish, but it won a spot in my heart.

5. Steve & Jen's Homemade Pizza. I don't have an actual picture of our pizza. I found a picture online. Steve and I decided to wing making our own pizza. It started out as a garlic and mushroom pizza with an alfredo sauce. That was good. The next time we added chicken. I think we've also added sausage and bacon before too. One day, I want to add spinach too. We also make a mean Hawaiian pizza too. We both want to try pizza cooked on the BBQ.

I finished up my notebook/journal (whatever you wanna call it) yesterday. I think it turned out rather cute. It's nice and simple. I didn't want anything popping off the cover so it can go through the abuse I have in store for it. I have a large Roots canvas bag I use to tote around our library books. Books go in and out of this thing a lot! My little notebook will get tossed in the lot too.

The notebook was put together by myself. I used thick cardboard for the cover. I covered the cardboard with paper from Sassafras Lass' Hog Heaven collection. The trims used were from Vintage Yummy. Some rub-on letters and tiny alphas and I was done.

The hardest part of this notebook was sewing the pages together. I did it all with thread and a needle. I lost my piercer months ago (I think I accidently threw it out in a mound of paper trash). Every hole was poked with a needle.

I have never wished for a sewing machine more than I did making this. But I love the outcome. And see? I've used the book already. It has a few recipes jotted down to try.

Until next time...

Just one layout

Over at Bad Girls, Wendy has introduced a new weekly contest called Bleu Print. Wendy kicked it off by posting a sketch and some super cool, fun pictures of, what I think is, a funky vintage clothing store. The colours just popped right off my computer screen! Wendy also provided a sample of her Bleu Print. It was beautiful!
I found it very inspiring! The clothing made me think of a shoe picture I took last month. My sister came over to my house. She was wearing one of her pairs of Converse shoes. I had Monkey's Converse-like shoes (they have skulls on them, so cute!) on him. I caught them sitting on the porch and thought the picture would totally suit Prima's Rebellious line. The bright colours of the clothing in the Bleu Print picture made me think of the Rebelious line too. So I played on it.
Other than the cardstock, paint and one tiny piece of paper, everything ended up being Prima.
The background paper is from Prima's FlirtyLittle Secret. It's the backside of a green paper. I liked how it was a sort of off white shade. I dry brushed black paint and then green. Once I had the skull paper in place, I used my Sharpie paint pen to make the white dots all around the edges.
I made my own pebbles for this layout too. I made three; one is hard to see thanks to poor lighting when I took the picture of the layout. The poor lighting actually dulled this layout. It's a lot brighter in real life.

Here's a close up of one of the pebbles. I put a couple of rub-ons onto black cardstock (a green heart and a skull). Using Diamond Glaze, I attached them to the bottom of some dew drops. I then trimmed around the dew drop. It looks like Prima's pebbles. So easy to make too. The other pebble that's hard to see has a little pink metallic heart. I cut the heart out of some old DCWV.

I really love how this layout turned out.

I'm almost done my homemade notebook. It's rather plain, but I wanted it that way. It's going to have to withstand getting thrown around. I plan to use it to write down magazine recipes and ideas when Monkey and I are at the library.

Until next time....

So Sketchy (nearly forgot)

I almost forgot....

My last page as a guest designer went up this morning on the So Sketchy site. You can check it out here and read the lovely things Ally had to say about my page.

This was a super fun page. I went a little overboard and actually sewed each and every circle on the polka dot paper. Most of that hard work got covered up. These are older pictures of Monkey. These were taken right before his 1st birthday. I can't get over how long his har was. I always hate cutting his hair. It's so thick, bouncy and has a nice little curl to it. I love it! Anyway, I had caught Monkey pulling kleenex out of the box and ripping it up. You know kids are up to no good when they're too quiet.

I really had a fun time being the guest designer for the month. I'm so glad my fun doesn't have to end. I am really looking forward to being on the So Sketchy team.

Until next time...

Tag, I'm It!

I've been tagged by Angie. I'm just going to dive right in.





*8 things I look forward to.



1. Steve coming home from work everyday.
2. My morning coffee.
3. Having baby #2 someday.
4. Getting design team assignments.
5. Finishing up my homemade journal (not so easy when you hand sew it all).
6. A visit from my grandmother this summer to meet her first great grandchild.
7. My daily morning walks with Monkey.
8. A visit from my best friend this summer.



*8 things I did yesterday



1. Drank coffee.
2. Did three loads of laundry.
3. Cleaned up after three accidents Monkey had. Aren't Pull-Ups suppost to hold in the liquid? Because he had three back to back accidents. Couch, floor and his little chair. Drove me crazy!
4. Two hour power walk pushing a stroller followed by...
5. ...A super yummy strawberry banana frozen smoothie by PC (Loblaw's brand). It was my first one and now I am officially addicted. At 80 calories a bar, I don't mind being addicted.
6. Scrapped. Working on a journal and I was inspired to make a bright, super funky layout. Love it so far!
7. Made my own pebble embellishments. Like the ones Prima has.
8. Played outside with Monkey.



*8 things I wish I could do



1. I wish I could open my own scrapbook store.
2. I wish I didn't have to worry about money.
3. I wish I could afford a new car. Mine's not doing so good anymore.
4. I wish I could finish more projects.
5. I wish I could understand Monkey better so he'd never get fustrated.
6. I wish I could give Monkey anything and everything.
7. I wish I could cook better (I'm getting there).
8. I wish I could make more artist scrapbook pages.



*8 things or shows that I have watched lately



1. Jon & Katie Plus 8
2. Horton Hears A Whoo (DVD) (20 mins of it anyway)
3. Thomas & Friends; James Gets Buzzed (DVD) (didn't actually watch it; but I was in the house while it was playing)
4. Two and a Half Men
5. Big Bang Theory
6. Blue's Clues (once again, didn't watch it. I was making supper and doing laundry)
7. Dora (ditto on the didn't watch it, but was here)
8. She Drives Me Crazy (TV movie that I didn't watch all of. I decided to take a shower and go to bed half way through it)



Angie has also given me this award:

Thank you very much, Angie. I'm honoured.

I know I'm suppost to tag people now, but it's early in the morning and I haven't had my coffee yet. So....

Until next time....

Faves and Layouts

Friday is here once more. It feels like Thursday to me.

This week, I'm going to do my fave 5's of the local library.

1. The Toy Train Set. At first, I hated that the library put up this little, wooden train set. Once Monkey starts playing, he doesn't want to leave. Today though, he asked to leave when I was in the middle of copying out a recipe from a magazine. Maybe he's getting better.

2. Bean Bag Chairs & Blocks. I love that the kids' section has large bean bag chairs to sit on and blocks to play with. It keeps Monkey entertained for a little bit while I pick out books. Monkey normally only picks out a book or two his self. If I let him near the shelves for too long, all the books end up on the floor. He's still learning to put them back. There's also a nice cushioned bench there to read on. We used to read the books there and come home empty handed. We have just started borrowing books.

3. DVD Selection. I honestly never noticed the DVDs before this week. Given there's more VHS tapes there than DVDs, but we still found movies to borrow. Earlier this week, Monkey borrowed a Christmas Wiggles DVD. It was a little strange to listen to Christmas music, but he enjoyed it. Today we picked up Horton Hears A Who and a Thomas & Friends DVD.

4. Public Restrooms. Mens, Womens, and an extra one for handicaps & Parents with babies. I don't like using public restrooms. It has nothing to do with germs. I just don't like the lack of privacy. And I can't stand dirty restrooms! Thankfully, the ones at the library are nice and clean. And I had a proud Mommy Moment today when Monkey asked to use the potty and used the "big potty" while I provented him from falling in. Whoo hoo! Do I see an end to diapers coming soon? Maybe.

5. Outside the Library. Our local library has a gorgeous area just out front. One could forget they are in a downtown core when sitting amongst the pillars and plants. I took Monkey there last weekend in hopes of getting charming pictures. Instead, I ended up with a ton of pictures of Monkey playing peek-a-boo among the pillars. Not what I was going for. I'll try again another day.

And I have a couple of layouts to share.

This one was done with my last Bad Girls kit. I painted with Glimmer Mist to tie everything together. It was a lot of fun to make. I loved the 7 Gypsies cards we got in the kit, but they were all bigger than I wanted for this layout. I cut out the smaller versions on the packaging to use instead.

I had fun with this one. I was going to grunge it up a little bit, but ended up liking it this way. I did this for a challenge I posted at wescrap this morning. Scrap a subject or thing instead of a person. My subject..."Mommy has a skull Obession." I buy up skull clothing for Monkey like it's going out of style. I love it!

Until next time...

Designer

I am please (and extremely excited) to announce that I am now part of the So Sketchy design team. I am a So Sketchy Sista!

I'm the guest designer over there this month. Next month I start my 6 month commitment to the site. I can't wait! Ally totally rocks the sketches. I'm looking forward to working with her.

I'm still on the WeScrap iTeam as well. Loving every minute over there. The girls (iTeam members and just regulars on the site) are all awesome. There was just a Murder Mystery game going on over there. I'm so disapointed I couldn't play along. Next time I will!

I'm currently getting ready for a huge garage sale I'm having at my parents house (since most of my unwanted stuff is there, and so they can sell their stuff too). I still have newborn baby clothes that were Monkey's. Time to de-clutter and feel good about it.

Until next time....

Grrr....(edited)

I can't afford rising prices anymore.
The juice I used to buy Monkey exactly a year ago has gone from $0.99 to $1.99. Crackers have gone up in price; apples have gone up; frozen juices (not fruit drinks; I don't buy those) have gone up; bread and yogurt have gone up. Heck, even the no name training pants we buy have gone up from $13.99 for a pack of 44 to $16.99! It's cheaper to buy Pull-Ups with a Huggies coupon when they go on sale.
Gas, food, diapers, training pants, books, crayons, bubbles and even scrapbooking products are all going up.
I got my renewal for my car insurance yesterday and it too had gone up! How the heck does someone who has a picture perfect driving record get their rate raised by $356 a year? I, of course, called up my broker and bitched her out. I was able to get my rates down $450.
I need a job.
Or, I need to get accepted into nursing school.
Which ever comes first.
I'm working hard at getting in to school through a government funded program. Anything I have to do to make sure my little Monkey gets everything he needs and maybe a little extra. It would be nice to know I can send him to college someday. Or buy myself a car that won't sit broken down in the driveway for a couple of months.
Sorry for the negative rant here. I'm seriously not too grumpy. Tomorrow I have good news to share that has made me very happy.
Until next time...

Edit:

Just got my prize Shimmerz paint in the mail from a blog giveaway. Many thanks to Jeni! I love the pretty shimmery paint!

OMG - And I never type that!

I woke up this morning knowing I was going to be on So Sketchy this morning. Check it out here.

I earned the chance to be the June guest designer there. I have been so excited about it. I am a huge fan of the So Sketchy site. I think I check it out daily, even if Ally doesn't have a new sketch up. I'm hoping someday So Sketchy will be as huge as Pencil Lines (another awesome sketch site, if you don't know about it. Although, I'm pretty sure most scrappers do.). I think Ally not only deserves it, but she can do it.

These are the two layouts I made from the sketch Ally sent me. I made the circle one first, but was so inspired by the scketch I created a second one. The second one may have product some Bad Girls might reconize. I used the last kit (before Wendy re-vamped the site) to create this layout. Adding tiny alphas, paint (custom blend of three colours to match the swirls in the grapher tape) and crepe paper ribbon (also from a BG kit, but I don't remember which).

On top of waking up and seeing my name on the So Sketchy blog. I saw my name over at the Sassafras Lass blog! If you've read my blog before, or chatted with me in a forum, or you've seen my stash in real life, you should know by now that I ~heart~ Sassafras Lass. They are, hands down, my favourite manufacturer. Followed closely second by Prima. Do you want to know the funny thing about my love for Sass? I used to be insanely scared to use their paper. I had a bunch of it because I really like it. I just had no idea how to use it. Now my huge stash is very small. I need a job for extra cash just to spend on Sass products. If I could design with just Sass and Prima, I would be a very happy scrapper.

That being said...I really should stop hoarding my Sass felties and brads. I love them so much, I don't want to use them! Silly me!

Until next time...

Summer Playtime Faves

For this week's Fave Fives, I am going to go over some of my favourite summer playtime activities to do with Monkey.

1. Exploring. This week, Monkey and I have decided to explore our town from top to bottom. We head out in the morning around 9:30-10 and come back home somewhere between 11-12. We've been having a lot of fun. I have yet to remember to take out my camera, so I found this picture online. It's our town, at least.

2. Going to the park. Who doesn't love the park? Our park has swings, a big thingie to climb, jump, swing, and slide on and a smaller version for younger kids, like Monkey. There's a picnic table, tons of rocks and a great hill to climb and roll down. Hours of fun at the park.

3. Trampoline. We have a trampoline in the backyard. It's got a netting around it so the kids are safe to jump away. Monkey loves jumping alone or with his friends. We just need to remind them not to jump on each other. They're really good and we've only had one accident (last year on the old trampoline. Monkey fell off it when the zipper of the netting broke. He would have been fine if he didn't face plant onto a chair. A bloody mouth and a fat lip were the worst of his injuries. Now there's a new trampoline with a good zipper). It would have to be my son who was hurt.

(Okay, this is a picture from last year, but I don't have uploaded from this year yet. Aww...Look at my little baby...He's 14 or 15 months old there. As much as I love my big boy, I miss my little baby!)

4. Water table fun. Last year I purchased a water table for Monkey. We keep it at my parents' house. Monkey loved playing in the water last year. Steve, my sister and I enjoyed filling up water guns and spraying each other; proving water tables are good for all ages. I can't wait until it's warm enough to pull it out again.

5. Reading books in the shade with a cold lemonade nearby. Ah...So peaceful, so relaxing...Until a certain toddler spills the lemonade, or starts crying because you won't read his favourite book for the 10th time in a row and have suggested a new book. Or said toddler thinks it's more fun to try and dismember elderly neighbours by throwing his books at them. Ah, reading in the shade.

(Once again, not one of my pictures. I found it online and think it's absolutely beautiful. How peaceful does that look!)

Until tomorrow when I'll have some scrappy related stuff....

So Sketchy Blog Hop

Wanna be inspired by some very talented ladies? Wanna take part in a very special blog hop? Wanna have the chance to win a prize?

Well, head on over to So Sketchy!

Ally, the owner and fabulously talented sketch designer, is celebrating both her own birthday and So Sketchy's first birthday. She and her So Sketchy Sistas have set up a blog hop. Leave a comment on each blog and your info on So Sketchy. Very easy, super fun. And if you don't follow So Sketchy, you should. Ally has a giveaway every month and her sketches are always well designed. Awesome inspiration all the time. And the best part, in my humble opinon, you don't have to wait a week before the next sketch pops up. Ally updates a lot! I've been known to take her card sketches and turn them into layouts since I don't do cards myself. (I'm card challenged. I suck at them)

You have until tomorrow to take part in the blog hop, so get moving! Sorry I didn't post eariler.

Until next time....