A punch winner and it's the end of the month!

First things first:



dolls123 said...

Happy Be-lated Birthday !!!!!

luckydolls123[at]verizon[dot]net

11:41 AM

You've got yourself an Apron Lace punch!

Thank you for all those sweet comments. Some of those really made me laugh and I needed that this week. As I said, you can work out if you need to lose weight, go to the salon and get a haircut if you are feeling ugly... but the days change and there's nothing you can do about that!

I'm feeling better about 33.... after all, what choice do I have! lol

Before I go I just wanted to remind you that this is the last day of the month and soon it'll be time to do a February layout for my monthly challenge. If you haven't played before, you can check out the details here. I hope you will! I know it's my challenge, but I'm sure glad I'm doing it. It has really helped get my scrapbook organized.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! The kit went live at Studio Calico last night, and most everything sold out in a few minutes! Quantities were the same as they were last month and the add-ons didn't all sell out then, so that goes to show you how beautiful this kit was! I'll share my layouts tomorrow.

Davinie

A birthday giveaway and the Studio Calico reveal

So today was my birthday. ack.
Payton was up for a majority of the night last night so I left for my one day at the office a little sleepy. I backed out of the carport, and turned my wheel to the left instead of the right, getting too close to these support beams, and took out a side mirror on my Dingo.
I broke a mirror.
Yes I did.
That's 7 years bad luck.
Do you know what will happen on the first day after my 7 years is up?




I'll turn 40.

Let's just say I didn't start my birthday out on a very positive note, lol.

It turns out yesterday was my last opportunity to be young and fun and I didn't even know it! lol

Steve and Payton made me feel better with flowers at the office, and when I came home the kids had made me a cake and had fun decorating the house with streamers. Their enthusiasm was infectious.

We went out to eat at my favorite Mexican restaurant, I had a strawberry margarita, we came home and ate cake, and all was good.

Morgan has been insistent all week that I wear my wedding dress today, but I was able to get out of it. I did put it on for her the other day for the first time, and it still fits, which is a blessing. Good. Grief.
Payton is excited about my birthday because after she and daddy have their birthdays next month, we'll all be 33, 33, and 3. You know, the same age. I thought that was pretty cute.

In honor of my birthday, and in an effort to make the glass feel half full instead of half empty, because this week was REALLY rough for me, I wanted to share my joy, try to find my joy, and give away something that has occupied a place close to my heart while tearing into the latest kit from Studio Calico.

That would be this:
Why yes. That's a new Apron Lace punch from Fiskars. I used it A LOT this month. I really love it. There's going to be a few other punches in addition to this one available Friday night after the March kit from Studio Calico goes on sale too.

Speaking of which, check it out:


Isn't it fun! I loved it and wish I had been able to focus more creative energy on playing with it. I'm going to have to get more Girl Friday from Cosmo Cricket, I'll tell you that right now.

Be sure to check out the board Friday night and chat with us, check out the SC blog and the March reveal night giveaway, and leave a comment on this post here if you would like a little Apron Lace lovin'. Random.org will help me choose a name on Saturday.

You do not have to be an SC subscriber to enter any giveaways. Ever!

Have a great day!

Davinie

My life and times and some Studio Calico sneaks.

So the one time of day where I can count on my girls to have quality time together without pulling each other's hair out is bathtime. They genuinely seem to enjoy romping in the bubbles together and playing with their Mermaid Barbie's and tub crayons.
Last night they were laughing and hollered for me to come see something. As I walk in I notice Payton laying down in the shallow waters with her belly sticking out and Morgan sitting next to her. When I asked what they were doing, Morgan said they were playing doctor, Payton was pregnant, and Morgan was going to get the baby out.
For a moment there my eyes bugged and I inhaled, preparing myself for a conversation about our personal parts and keeping our hands to ourselves, etc., when Morgan took her hand, turned it to the side, and with a saw-like action, proceeded to "cut Payton's belly open" to get the baby out...........

This is where I thank my lucky stars for two Cesarean births, as it has given a small window of reprieve from the inevitable discussions that lead to the bird and bees talks.

(BTW, Morgan was breech and ended up with the cord wrapped around her a few times which is why she couldn't turn, and they don't do VBAC's at my hospital so Payton was scheduled but then came emergent where VBAC wouldn't have been an option anyway).

lol

Anyway, I've been knee deep in Open House time for Morgan's preschool, and I'm also working with a friend to host a crop to help draw business to my struggling LSS which is scheduled for 3/14. Besides that and my regular job, as well as a sleepless 2 year old who's been staying up way too late, I actually have a couple more Studio Calico sneaks to share with you.




More to come!

Have a great day!

Davinie

January layout challenge winner and ideas, plus a wee Studio Calico sneak

Oh my gosh, I am so inspired by the ideas you have given me with your January layouts for my Project 12 challenge.

I really liked how Maria did two 8x8's for her January layout.

I LOVE how Simplytam used two different colored backgrounds for her layout and how she carried the red and the turquoise through both pages. Perfect balance of design.

I love that Hanna is making a mini album for 2009 with her Jenni Bowlin cards. Zorina is doing a special album with her layout too.

I think Rita's layout is gorgeous... love how she used strips of the Sassafras borders. I also like that she combined different challenges she has seen online. That's perfectly fine!

Jennifer is doing monthly layouts using some of her favorite conversations with her little girl. She is also using those Jenni Bowlin cards. Love that! Leslie trimmed hers in half! Love that too!

Without further adieu....


Well good grief. That's really small! But it's the number 12, and the twelfth link was....

Jennifer.T said...

Here's mine, I've linked it over at SC too!

http://www.studiocalico.com/forums/galleries/show/7787

5:39 PM

Woot for Jennifer! Thank you so much for playing along. Send me your address and I'll get you a Footnotes add-on from Studio Calico's Bibliography kit.

Thanks again to everyone who played along. If you didn't have time this month, no worries. Be taking pictures and having fun and thinking about what you've done in February, because another challenge awaits. :)

And if you posted a link to your layout at the Studio Calico blog, check here to see if you won.

Before I go I wanted to share a tiny sneak of the March kit from Studio Calico.... Garment District. DEEEE lish. My new little blinkie for SC on the sidebar there is a great big hint as to what to expect with the Studio Calico exclusive papers, etc., in this kit. It's a must have for sure. And yes.... I got all 3 add-ons yet again! I couldn't help myself.





Have a great day! Davinie

Cardalicious 14 and a little more Project 12

I have to share this with you because it's wreaking havoc at my house, lol.
On Valentines Day for something fun, we baked a couple of cakes and let the girls ice and sprinkle them to their little heart's content. They had a blast with it, so I'm glad we did it and we'll do it again.
Check 'em out:
barf. lol
The problem I have now is that those cakes are still here, lol. They each got a slice after dinner on V-Day, but I am having a hard time getting rid of them... I don't want the tears, and they are NOT going to eat all of that.
We still had a lot of fun with them. I highly recommend it!

Today I just wanted to share two little scrappie projects. First is my card for this week's challenge at the Cardalicious blog. The challenge was to create a friend card, with ribbon, and the color green. All products except ribbon on my card are brand new from Pink Paislee. My ribbon is green, but you can't quite tell from the photo. I took it at night and need to take another in the daylight, I think. I hope you'll play along! (notice I used that apron lace punch I have been lusting over, lol).



Lastly I wanted to share a little more January inspiration for my monthly challenge. I asked the sweet Waleska to create something for me, because I just adore her work, and this is what she delivered, lol.


I especially adore the fabulous photo brackets and those STAMPS. Those stamps are fab.
I know I keep saying it, but I am going to do it again. You have until Friday the 20th! Don't forget to link your layouts here and at the SC blog for a prize there too... non-SC subscribers are welcome!~

Have a great day! Davinie

a kitschy love post.

Well, for the first time in a while Steve and I got to go out on a date. Last night we went to dinner in downtown Bend, I had Halibut, Steve had chicken and ribs, and then we went to the movies. We saw Benjamin Button. Um... it was different. I'm not sure what I think about many parts of the movies, but the one thing that stands out to me the most was that Cate Blanchett is gorgeous! Really. She played everything from a teenager to an old woman, and I was constantly struck by how beautiful her skin and her features are. She has a beautiful dancer's body and she's even had kids! She's also a great actress.

I saw her in a play once when I was in London. It was called Plenty. And when we were in the theather, John Lithgow (from 3rd Rock from the Sun at the time) sat in the next row over. That's the closest to famous people I've ever been. lol

Anyway, we had a great date, and came home to happy kids because they spent the night making cookies and playing with Grandma and Grandpa. They love spending time together and it warms my heart to see them.

Today we are spending the day home. I'm doing a bit of cleaning, a bit of crafting, and in a bit we are going to decorate cakes. Just for fun we made a couple of round cakes this morning, and this afternoon the kids get to decorate them with frosting and sprinkles and have a piece for dessert after dinner. They are very excited about it.

Before I go I wanted to share a bit of hybrid Kitschy love. Hybrid is new for me, but I"m having a lot of fun with it. I love that you can change the colors in the patterns to fit your projects.

For this layout, I loved the blue houndstooth so I printed it as is.

You can get the houndstooth in the Olivia kit.

Next I used the yellow polka dot paper in the Matilda kit, and changed the colors to a nice kraft. I then trimmed out clouds for Payton to sleep on.

I had a lot of fun for this last element. I printed some buttons from the Thrift Store Chic Button kit on Claudine Hellmuth's Sticky Backed canvas, trimmed them out, and then adhered them to Bazzill chipboard circles. I then used my Cropadile to punch holes, and then tied floss. I just love the look, and since it's a digital kit, I'll have buttons forever, lol!

Here's my layout!



I used some ribbon from my stash and some Basic Grey sticker alphas for the title.

I also used a new punch from Fiskars! The Apron Lace punch. LoVE it.

I just wanted to point out that 2peas is having a sale on Kitschy kits with 10% off. That's a great deal! You can check all of Danielle's kits out here.

Have a great Saturday, Valentines Day, the day of LOOOVVVEEEE. Before I go I wanted to leave you with a little last minute Valentine craft idea. I saw this yesterday and thought it was super, super cute to have hanging around the house.

Heartman

I think we are going to make one of these guys today, for entertainment and fun with the kids.

:) Davinie

P.S. Less than a week until y0ur January layouts are due if you want to win a couple of great RAK'S! I have been adding some great goodies to mine so I hope you'll play along! Check it out here.

A PSA about supporting your schools without extra money from your pockets...

I'm taking a break from crafting with this post to just share some info I've been researching lately. This may not be news to you, but as a mom of young children who haven't entered the public school system yet, this is good info for someone like me, so I wanted to pass it along.

As you may not know, I'm the Registrar for Morgan's preschool. With the economy as it is, many sectors of the economy locally have been affected, which has meant the need for scholarships to attend preschool, as well as withdrawals because of financial reasons. I hate to see the kids go because of this.

I have been racing around the net, looking for ways to bump up our school scholarship fund. We are a non-profit school, so attendance is vital to our survival, which means that we don't have a lot of extra money to spend, and if we are short on students, we get worried about paying the school's bills, and don't have a penny to spare for scholarships.

I was trying to think of easy ways for people to contribute to their schools without having to shell out a lot of money from their pockets.

Two really easy ways to participate are through Upromise, and Box Tops for Education.

With Upromise, you simply link your grocery store member id number or a credit card with them, and a percentage of your purchases will be sent to the school of your choice. I linked my grocery store member id numbers, and each month at the school, our treasurer has a notation of a couple of dollars here and there in checks we have received, which can go straight to our scholarship fund. With some scholarships, we are doing something as simple as $25/month discount, so every little dollar helps.

With Upromise, I was able to choose my daughter's preschool.

With Box Tops for Education, I was not able to add the preschool, so instead, I looked to the school she will be attending for her elementary years. I'm sure you have seen those little labels on Box Tops in your grocery store from various items like cereal to granola bars, to quick meals, etc. It doesn't take much to rip them off and toss the label in an envelope. Then you simply send it to your school coordinator and they forward it on. You can get the info about which school to contribute to and who their coordinator is on the Box Tops website. The school gets 10 cents for every label, so they can really add up, and you didn't have to fork out any extra money.

I just wanted to share these easy ideas, because I hate to hear when programs are cut or schools are short on supplies, and if everyone participated in something like this, it would help a lot, I think. I'm even having the grandparent's do it, and send me their tops.

That's it. Have a great Tuesday!

P.S. I was asked whether you had to get kits from Studio Calico in order to participate in my Project 12 challenge. The answer is you absolutely do not. Anyone can participate. This month you will be eligible to enter by linking your layouts at the SC blog and here for a prize. I hope you will play along!

:)

Ramblings and my January layout

I was trying to recycle a can last night and when I went to smash it together to keep the lid inside, the lid jumped out and cut my finger. I can't believe how one little cut has made such an impact on my day, lol. I can barely type, you use your right pointer finger A LOT on the keyboard, lol, I couldn't shampoo the kids hair last night, and both girls freaked out. Payton started crying and said she didn't want me to be "broke". lol. Good grief. And now I have a Care Bear bandaid.

Anyway, the first thing I want to share is my card for the Cardalicious challenge this week.
The challenge? A thank you card, with felt, stitching somewhere, and it has to have PINK. I had no trouble with this one, lol!
I used some Pink Paislee Pop Fashion and some Fancy Pants felt from my stash. I have no idea why I haven't used that darn felt yet, lol.

I made it easy on myself and simply hand stitched in the punched holes in the felt. I hope you'll play along! You can check out this week's challenge on the Cardalicious blog here.

I haven't posted here all week because I've been in charge of the Studio Calico blog. I decided to post some info and ideas about my Project 12 challenge there.

On this post I shared some sketch sites that looked interesting.

Tina posted a January layout here, and I shared my layout and a layout that Nic made me here.

I wanted to share my layout again here, and give you a closer look at the little details.


I wanted to do a two pager, because the Jenni Bowlin calendar cards are big, and I knew I wanted to include several photos in my layout.






I had this fun Hero Arts circle stamp that I used to highlight the dates of my photos. Two of my photos were taken on the same date, hence 4 stamps instead of 5. I thought it was a fun design element for these big cards.


It's January, so for some dimension, I used snowflakes and brads for embellishments. I had some October Afternoon rubons and I adhered them to paper before trimming them out. I'm a repositioner, lol.

I really liked the shape of my calendar cards. I was tempted to break out another scallop because I've been using them on everything, but went with the shape of the calendar cards instead. I have a 2009 Making Memories desk calendar with this pattern on the bottom edge, and I just traced that on some Sassafras papper and trimmed it to match. I hand stitched on the top edge, but on the bottom I used some ribbon, because I love to use ribbon and love the texture it gives to my projects.

As I said in my Studio Calico blog post, I think I'm going to carry this design to all of my pages this year. I love the simple design, and I can use as many photos as I want, because I print them at home and can adjust the size. I love the use of 5 photographs here, though, so I may do that every month. I guess it depends on what we do!

You still have almost 2 weeks for my challenge, so I hope you'll play along! Be sure to link your layouts on this thread, and post them at Studio Calico on this blog post, for two chances to win.

I have been asked about the canvas I posted at the SC blog, and I'll be posting it here with a tutorial on how to make it soon. Steve is the one who put it together for me, and he has a few tips for making your own magnet board, so I need to wait for him to get home so we can make another one. I have plans for at least two more. I LOVE this idea.

Also... yes. Payton said she loves her daddy because he makes a lot of eggs. I asked each of the girls why they loved their dad, and wrote their answers on his accordion album/card. That's what she said, lol. The girls love it when dad chefs up breakfast.

Finally, I wanted to share a little bit of the contents in the next kit from Studio Calico. They've arleady guessed it on the Pictionary thread, and it's one of my favorite things from winter CHA, so I'm so excited for my kit to get here so I can dig in and play with these. I'm crossing my fingers that the mail lady drives up with it today.

Jenni Bowlin Chipboard buttons. YUM.

Have a great day! Davinie

A little love-ish.

It's February which means the new issue of True North Parenting has come out. I did a really quick and easy Valentine project for this issue. My hubby is hard to scrapbook for on Valentines day, because he doesn't have an office desk to set a lovey dovey frame, and things like that. That said, he's been "complaining" a little bit about needing to update the wallet photos in his wallet, so I made up a fun little accordion album Valentine that holds wallet photos.

All you need is one piece of double sided patterned cardstock and a couple of embellies. I used Scenic Route's Loveland line for this project (speaking of Scenic Route, did you catch a glimpse of their new Garden Grove line? So totally cute. I'll have to get it).



A really quick and easy project, and Steve will be really happy to get updated photos for his wallet. Perfect!

If you have little kids, then you might be like me and hoard your toilet paper rolls too, lol. There is always something crafty that you can do with them, and since they are something you always have and will just throw away, they are a great "green" way of crafting too.

My kids and I made Valentine butterflies yesterday. Morgan was insistent on adding a little bling so I broke out some Bubblegum Pixee Stix and let her shake gently, lol. Well, as gently as a new 5 year old can shake. Payton had fun with this part too so it was all worth it.

I really try to do home decor projects with the kids every month as the seasons change. I used to do crafts all the time using paper plates, but Morgan has been really into these toilet paper roll crafts, and since you can print a black and white version so that she can then color and cut it out, it really saves time and makes it more fun for her too.

You can find many toilet paper craft templates here.

I also wanted to share more info for one of my projects for the February kit from Studio Calico. My little heart purse was just so darn easy to make and I love it to bits! I didn't fancy it up too much. It didn't need it. But oh, layers and bling and stitching would have made it so darn cute! I think I might do another one in a larger version to give to my girls with Valentine goodies.

I found the template for that purse here..

Today was my day to post on the Pink Paislee blog. I posted a sweet cake made from two paper mache boxes that would make a great gift box or home decor item. I want to fill my mantle with sweet treats for Valentines Day. Wouldn't that be cute? Cakes in all shapes and sizes? Anyway, you can see them and check out my post here.

Lastly, as you know my word for 2009 is Organize. One thing that needs serious help are my layouts, so I searched the internet for deals on my favorite albums, American Crafts Modern D-Ring binders. I found an online sale at Joann's with my 12x12 brown binders for $10.19. And then I found a coupon code for free shipping, EBD039, which is good until 2/8. Unfortunately, this sale won't work for my International friends, but if you are in the US and have a Joann's like mine, this might work for you. And even if you do have a Joann's... free shipping is always nice to take advantage of, especially if you have little kids you'd need to bundle up and take with you.

Ooh. One more thing. I had to share this video from Disneyland because I can't stop giggling. We went to Mickey's Toontown and there was the rollercoaster that we all could ride, even Payton. After checking it out everyone was game to go, so even though I am NOT a fan of rollercoasters, I decided to be a big girl and get on. In this video it may look as if I am loving the ride, but that's not so, lol. I was overexaggerating my enthusiasm so as not to scare sweet PJ, who was sitting next to me. Notice my death grip? Steve and Morgan were sitting behind us, and my sister was in front of us. She turned her video camera around and it was supposed to get everyone, but gal dang the thing followed ME around the whole track! This video cracks me up because I don't normally watch myself in action, but it also cracks me up because Payton didn't react at all! lol! My voice got quite Mickey-ish too! When we got off the ride Payton said she didn't want to go again though, lol. This was one of Morgan's favorites, and she went on it a few more times. I didn't! Don't let the giggles confuse you! lol



Davinie

Are you Ready? Challenge time!

Did anyone else watch the game yesterday? Woot, that was a good game. I was hoping for the Cardinals, but in the end, it didn't matter.... I didn't win the football pool. lol. This was the 7th year for a party hosted by my inlaws. We had a bunch of people there, and the kids had a blast. I ate way too much!

I know today is the 2nd but football is my excuse for not posting yesterday. I just plain wasn't here.

So January has come and gone. I cannot believe it. School is back in session, Morgan turned FIVE, and we have already gone to CHA and Disneyland! And now it's February!

Obviously, with a lot happening this month, I have a ton of photos. But you don't need to have a ton of photos to participate in the challenge. You don't even need one photo.

365 is too hard for me. So this is a Project 12 of sorts. Let's scrap the month of January. Choose one photo, or choose several that were your favorites. For this challenge you just need to document the month. Because I'm a procrastinator, I'm even going to give you a long deadline. Post your layouts to this thread by February 20. I'll be posting some inspiration for you to work from until that date. On the 20th I'll draw a name for a little goodie, and those who participated will feel great about wrapping up the month. If you are out of photos to scrap this is even better, because you can use the photos twice by doing this type of layout.

It works out that this is my week to host the Studio Calico blog too. Because of that, I'm posting the challenge there as well, and if you post a link to your layout on that thread, you will have two chances to win. One of the prizes is the Footnotes Add-on from the previous Bibliography kit. I have a lot of fun examples to share of projects you can do with this add-on. I think it's a must have.

So. Do a layout. Link me here and at the Studio Calico blog. Two chances. You have until the 20th. Sound good?

I hope you'll play along! I admit to being very selfish with this challenge. By challenging you I am forcing myself to find time to participate as well. I need to scrap in the present more often.

Have a great Monday! I have a ton of things to share with you this week, including Valentine and Pink Paislee projects, and more of my Disney vacay.

:) Davinie