Happy Monday

Happy Monday!!!

I sure had fun last week reading all the blogs and posts from the lucky ones who attended CHA!!  Can't wait to try so many new and fun products that are coming out.
My week last week was not as activity packed as the one before, but there were some noteworthy happenings.
I received my cardstock from SEI.  I love new paper!!!

I also received my prize from Prima.  Wow, was I excited!  I received seven packages of flowers and bling! Can hardly wait to use them.  :o)

On Friday, we had dinner with our daughter Melodie and son in law Ira, in celebration of their upcoming 8th anniversary.  Tomorrow is their special day, but we got together at Outback Steakhouse for a tasty dinner.

I love them soooo much!!  They are such a happy couple.

We are pretty happy ourselves.

I am still working on my tags for the tag swap,  I am making a little progress, as I have now chosen what paper I am going to use, and my color scheme, etc. I am using the new Authentique Lovely line.  It is really nice for Valentines day.  I purchased the paper at my local scrapbook store, Chico Scrapbooks.  I would encourage everyone to support their local scrapbook store, so we can continue to  have them around for years to come.   I also finished a tag just for fun, to get used to using the Tattered Angels mist and the Tim Holtz inks.

                                                               Finished tag.

                                                                  Tag in progess.

And last but not least in my blog this week, my son Justin was at the Inauguration today and got some great pictures.  I will share a couple of them with you.

Everyone have a happy scrappy week ahead!
P.S.  January is over half over....have you created anything this month?????

Happy Sunday to all!!

I know.....you can hardly believe it.  I actually am making another post!  I am surprised myself, but I had some fun stuff to talk about this week.
My week started off great.  I won a prize!  Not only did I win a prize, but I won it from one of my favorite companies, PRIMA!!!

Prima started out making Pretty flowers, but now they have expanded and have almost anything you would need to do all of your mixed media projects!!  SUPER AWESOME!

I am a member of Club SEI.  I love SEI products.  I have been a fan of theirs from their beginnings.  My club kit came on Tuesday, which of course is always exciting to see what new goodies and ideas they are sending me.  Much to my surprise, inside my kit was a free adhesive to try and a gift certificate for $20.00!  They had sent me a gift card for being a member for 3 years.  So I ordered some cardstock for future use.  A girl can never had too much paper!!  :o)

Wednesday my friend Michelle came to work and took me to lunch at Chipotle.  Yum, yum!!  Michelle and I used to work together at Esplanade Women's Care, where we became fast friends.  We share a love of papercrafting and always have fun when we get together.

Thursday I got an email from Scrappy Happiness, telling me the group that I was going to be swapping tags with.  This is very exciting for me, as I have never participated in anything like this before.  Scrappy Happiness is a blog by Drew Scott.  He is a talented young man who teaches and designs for Prima.  You can look for his classes on Live with Prima if you are ready to be inspired.

Friday my husband and I had the most tasty dinner at our daughter Melodie and son in law Ira's house.  We look forward to any excuse to be able to see them, but some of Ira's great cooking is the best excuse of all!!  He cooked us some delicious steaks, and we had a super great time visiting there.

Also on Friday our son Justin went on another one of his adventures.  This time to see Mt. Rushmore.  It was very cold, but he got some great pictures, and some more stories to share.

Yesterday I did some experimenting with various techniques that I may be using on my tag swap.  I had a lot of fun, and will keep playing around with it until I get the look I am searching for.  Here is a picture of what I did so far.

I still am watching my videos every day with Creative Jumpstart.  There have been some fun techniques I will  definitely try in the future.
Some of my friends are at CHA in Anaheim right now, seeing all of the latest and greatest in papercrafting.  I have been following along on every blog that I can get info on.  Lots of fun going on there.
All in all, I think this was a great week.  I had lots of love and fun all week long.
So hugs to all of you, and I hope you have a great week ahead.  xoxoxox

HAPPY 2013!

Happy New Year to all of my friends and family!!!!

It has been sooooooooooooooooooooooo long since I have posted to my blog.  I am sure you can guess what one of my goals for this year is going to be.  I am going to REALLY make an effort to post on this blog on a regular basis.  I have been slightly side tracked for awhile, but I am definitely going to get back on track.

I still love, love, love, my scrapbooking!  I am going to concentrate on my scrapbooks this year.  After all, that is what this whole hobby was started for.  I want there to be a record of my family and all of our fun and traditions, long after I am not here.  I love my family, and they are so wonderful!

I still will make cards, and learn new techniques along the way, of which I will also share with everyone.  So, let the fun begin!

After my last post during National Scrapbook day, I was really getting some scrappy time in.  My room was fairly organized, and I was scrapping on a regular basis.  June and my birthday came around, and Chico got a new scrapbook store!  Anyone who knows me, knows about my love of scrapbook stores.  I had the privilege of managing a scrapbook store from 2004-2006.  It was a very happy time and experience for me. So I truly love the fun and atmosphere of a Scrapbook store.  The new store, Chico Scrapbooks is fun,

 and the owner Jodi Beck has a true love of all papercrafting and is a very knowledgeable photographer.  We quickly became friends, so the rest of my 2012, was immersed in scrapbook store activities.  I have learned so much and had some great fun.

 However, I also had some sadness, as my sister Karen passed away in December.

  I have had lots of love and support from my family.  All of this has helped me to remember what is really important in my life.  

Now forward on to 2013.  

Right now I am involved in an online activity called Creative Jumpstart. 

 You might want to check it out, as there are many great teachers involved with this.  I am going to use some of the techniques I am learning in my 2013 scrapbook.  I am also going to use some of Graphic 45's "A Place In Time" in my scrapbook this year,

 along with TONS of other paper lines, as you also know my love of paper!

I received a new Cricut from my very supportive husband Vince for Christmas.

  He got me the Cricut Expressions 2 with PINK end caps.  Hooray!!  Isn't he the greatest?

  He also got me a sewing machine especially designed for papercrafting.

  I will let you know how I do with that.  I expect to do a lot more sewing on paper this year as well.  I need to learn how to use my new Cricut, and if I learn anything cool or helpful, I will also share these things with you.  

Please feel free to share any new techniques with me.  I would love to hear from everyone.  

So with all of this, I wish you all a very happy and productive new year.  Give each other lots of hugs!

Here is a picture of two of the cards I created at Christmas time.  I has having fun with October Afternoon.  Next post will be my first creation of 2013.  Have a happy day!

hugs

Happy National Scrapbook Week #2

Hello Friends and Family!!

National Scrapbook week is going splendidly, and I can tell you I am having a wonderful time.
 
Yesterday, the first day of my celebration began with me winning a scrapbook contest!  I was so surprised to open up an email that said, "YOU WON"  National Scrapbook Day promotion at PaperCrafter's Corner.
Oh, my gosh!!  I originally entered the contest to try and win the $25.00 fee they were going to send to your local scrapbook store for your National Scrapbook Day crop.  I had no idea that you would win a bunch of scrapbook supplies to boot!  So I would like to publicly thank PaperCrafter's Corner for such a wonderful and generous prize.  http://www.papercrafterscorner.com/  Here is a link to their website if you would like to check them out.

When I came home last night, I wanted to make something, and to begin to pack my tote for my upcoming crops.  But, due to time issues, I only had time to begin packing.  (which only made me more excited for this weekend)

Tonight I decided I would make something no matter what.  I was successful and made a card.  Not one of my more fancy creations, but fun to make none the less.

I am about to stop for the night, but I will let you know what happens tomorrow.

If you make anything or have any scrappy ideas for this week, send me a note.

Happy Scrapping!!  xo

Happy National Scrapbook Week!

Good morning Friends!

I cannot believe how long it has been since I took the time to post something on my blog.  Life gets in the way, and before you know it.... months have gone by without a mention of what makes me incredibly happy, SCRAPBOOKING!!!!!!
True, I have still been making things here and there, but it is a hit and miss, and boy do I miss it!  :o)
With the quickly approaching National Scrapbook Day nearly here, of which I now celebrate it for two days, I have decided to make it stretch for a week and call it National Scrapbook week. I will attempt to do something every day this week, culminating with a Friday night crop, and all-day Saturday crop as the grand finale.  Sounds like too much fun to be true!

You may be asking..."Why are you posting that picture, Rhonda"?  Well, I had an "AHA" Scrapbooking moment yesterday.  I was reading through my many scrapbooking emails I get every day and opened up one from Achiever's.  I have only been there once, but it was a lot of fun.  Anyway, they had a little video put to music.  No, the video was not outstanding nor was the music.  But the content really went to my heart.  Basically, it was showing the many reasons, "WHY" we scrapbook.
I started this hobby because there are so many things in life to remember.  I WANT to pass down memories to my family.  I WANT them to remember how important they were and ARE to me, and how much I LOVE THEM.  I will never be rich or famous, and I will never make some huge contribution to history, but I can make some small impression on my own family.
It is easy to get sidetracked in scrapbooking, making cards and making presents for people.  Don't get me wrong, those are wonderful things to do.  BUT I personally am going to make an effort to get back on track with why I started this to begin with.  To make a visual and touchable "blog in a book" of my family and what it means to me.
As silly as it seems to others, I AM A SCRAPPER.  I love my family, and I have a passion for this hobby.
I will let you know what I do scrappy for today, Monday April 30th, before I go to sleep tonight.
Have a wonderful day, and a wonderful start to National Scrapbook Week!!!  xo

Get Ready for Monday Blog

Hi to all my friends and family!

Well I had soooo much fun cropping on Friday night, that I could not control  myself.  I just HAD to make some more cards!
I did have a lot of fun, and it made me feel like I am ready for Monday and a new week.
Hope you like these, and have a wonderful and happy week.  xo

This card is made using some paper from SEI's "Chickadee" line.

I also used SEI's "Chickadee" line on this card.  I love SEI paper!  But then again....I LOVE PAPER!!!

Speaking of loving paper, the next two cards are made with some more paper I love.  The company is Echo Park, a newer company than SEI, but they really have some cute stuff.  It is their "Country Drive" line.  You can get some at Paradise Scrapbook Boutique if you like it.

Hope you find time for creating this week!!

Crop #3

Hello again, and HAPPY SATURDAY!!!!

I ALWAYS feel more chipper after a fun time at the scrapbook store.  It is so much fun to just relax, create, and  converse with fellow scrappers!
We had an all around great evening.  It is fun to see what others are working on.  Everyone has different styles and projects that they are completing.  Did I say COMPLETING???  You bet I did!!!  These ladies actually complete what they start out to create.  It is an amazing concept to me, one in which I hope to eventually do myself.
Good food, and good times.
So, I am sure you would like to see what I worked on last night.  I am still working on my Wicked photos, from my trip to New York City, so hopefully you won't get tired of the subject matter.  I again used "The Magic of OZ" paper by Graphic 45.  I completed a layout and 2 cards.  I will try and get at least a couple of more new cards completed using another line, just so you have some variety.
I would love to stay and create all day, but responsibility calls.
Have a wonderful and happy day!  xo

Thank you card

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My Double Page Layout