Profound. And, interesting.
It's been quiet lately. I've been taking some time to figure things out. Lots of changes. Lots of decisions to be made. It's funny how life throws things your way that you wouldn't have expected in a million years, and then you just have to deal. Even when dealing isn't really what you want to do.
I've taken a couple steps back from the internet lately. Somewhere along the way, I decided actually living in your own life, and rediscovering the simple things, is far more rewarding than gluing bits and pieces of memories to paper. Not to say that I'm going to stop recording my and my family's memories. Not at all. I just choose to be more present in, well, the PRESENT. I'm going to try to take this blog back to where it started from... more sharing. Sharing of everything. In the past few months, it has only been proof of deadlines completed. But, I want to get back to more sharing of everyday life. More pictures. More thoughts. More stories. More words. We'll see how that goes.
How about some slightly introspective Friday Fill-Ins a couple of days late?
1. "In a hole in the ground, there lived this funny little girl that I forgot. She got lost somewhere amongst the grown up world of responsibilities, decisions, stress. I miss that funny little girl. I'm trying to find her again."
2. "I'm not perfect, but that ain't no matter."
3. "After dark the rain began to fall again, I remembered that the storms always seem to roll in full-force when he's gone. Always."
4. "Why can't I discover vast treasures from the hold of the Spanish galleon? I'd be set for life."
5. "There was a hand in the darkness, and hopefully, a light at then end of the tunnel."
6. "Accidents ambush the unsuspecting... why do I always seem to be the unsuspecting?"
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to... well, it's over. But, I was looking forward to Hazel's first sleep-over (which was a raging success). Tomorrow my plans include tying up a bunch of pressing creative deadlines. Why am I such a procrastinator? And Tuesday, I want to finish cleaning my house before my aunt arrives for a visit.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
today...
* We ate the best lunch imaginable at Magnolias. Fried green tomato w/lump crab meat BLT sandwich, sweet potato fries w/ horseradish ranch dipping sauce, and red velvet cake for dessert. *drool* I was venture to say that it was the best food I've eaten in my entire life. I kid you not. I read about it in Southern Living, and had to try it. I've never been disappointed by Southern Living. And, it's in Charleston... never been there until today. I want to move there. Seriously. It's one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen.
* On the way home, we saw an alligator. Yup. right there by the side of the road. He lives in a pond near the entrance to the gated community where my aunt and uncle live.
* We took the kids to the beach where we dug in the sand.
* We built sand castles.
* We flew a kite.
* We jumped in some very, very cold water, much to mom's dismay.
We had a great time on our trip, and I'm sad to be packing up tonight, and leaving tomorrow. But, I have a husband at home that's lonely without his family. And, he's leaving on Monday for a month and a half's worth of training camp in Louisiana. So, we're going to get in a couple of days of quality time before we kick into intense training and deployment count-down mode. I hope you all had a fabulous week... I know I did!
* On the way home, we saw an alligator. Yup. right there by the side of the road. He lives in a pond near the entrance to the gated community where my aunt and uncle live.
* We took the kids to the beach where we dug in the sand.
* We built sand castles.
* We flew a kite.
* We jumped in some very, very cold water, much to mom's dismay.
We had a great time on our trip, and I'm sad to be packing up tonight, and leaving tomorrow. But, I have a husband at home that's lonely without his family. And, he's leaving on Monday for a month and a half's worth of training camp in Louisiana. So, we're going to get in a couple of days of quality time before we kick into intense training and deployment count-down mode. I hope you all had a fabulous week... I know I did!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
*shares*
This blog has been looking a little deserted lately, but it isn't for a lack of love. We've been so busy winding down the last of Hazel's cheerleading season, which finally ended at their national competition this past weekend at Myrtle Beach. We made a small family vacation out of it, and really enjoyed ourselves. Plus, her team came in 4th! Go Storm Tiny Twisters! Here's a quick snap of her and a couple of friends with their team trophy...
Hazel had a great time competing, checking out the aquarium, eating some fabulous (and some not-so-fabulous) seafood, and swimming with her teammates at an indoor pool. And hopefully, it won't be long before we can do something fun like that again. Now, I have the kids at my great aunt and uncle's beach condo for a week. Unfortunately, Bryan had to return home... such is the military life. I'm trying to enjoy myself here. It's a bit of a stretch to actually call this a vacation with a going-through-the-terrible-two's-year-old and a precocious almost-five-year-old in tow. But, I'm trying... I'm really trying here, people. It isn't often that we get very far outside of Fayetteville, might as well make the best of it.
Speaking of the best of it... Label Tulip's March kit, in my opinion, was the best of the best. I LOVED everything in it! It is one of my favorite kits that we've had in quite some time. I just wish I had more time to play with it, and wasn't rushing through everything trying to get ready for this trip. (Did I mention that I had to help make 60 goodie bags for the girls, a bunch of signs, and decorate some cow bells... all last week?) Nonetheless, I did get to make some pages that are my personal faves I've made in quite some time!
I lovie this page! Love, love, love it!!! I'd been dying to get my hands on some of those new Gal Friday papers, and they were even more perfect in person. I'd been hanging onto these old photos of Hazel's first time on a bike, and that little biker babe from the Sass papers was the perfect accent for these photos. Said biker gal had the whole "Dick and Jane" look about her... thus, the title "See Hazel Ride." It's my favorite page by, like, a lot a lot. ;0)
Now, these cheer photos have been kinda' a bitch to work with. Their team colors (blue, gold, silver and white) aren't colors that I normally scrap with. And this kit, at first glance, didn't really look like something I could pull it off with. But, lo and behold, there WERE bits and pieces that came together nicely to work with the photos. In all of my harried craziness before the trip, I hadn't realized that I accidentally rolled the monthly challenge and the member lift all in to one layout. Doh! And, of course, I didn't realize it until I was uploading photos of my pages late at night in our hotel room... scrapping supplies hundreds of miles away... no time to create another page. So, it is what it is.
But, our monthly challenge was to use product packaging on our layouts. These days, it seems like some of the packaging that our products come in are just as pretty as the products themselves. And, in this economy, who isn't trying to stretch their scrapping budget further? I know I am, and using up that packaging is one fix for that problem... not to mention all that excess packaging isn't just being dumped into a landfill. ;0) My packaging uses were as such...
I used the acetate indexing from the "Express Thought" LT exclusive stamp. The way that the photo on the layout was oriented, I needed the LT exclusive to be flipped in the other direction. Rather than stamping, I cut out the thought bubble from the index packaging it came with. Then, I flipped it over to be facing the direction I needed and adhered it, using small dots of Diamond Glaze around the edge, to a piece of patterned paper. Once the Diamond Glaze dried, I trimmed the excess patterned paper from around the edges. Now the thought bubble is all ready for a title!
And, Prima seems to have some of the most beautiful packaging these days. I trimmed out the dies-cut vine edges from the Flower Frillies packaging, and used them as fancy photo corners with some added sparkles for this layout.
This month, we had the added honor, as a team, of creating a little farewell book for Cindee. Our esteemed leader, since the launch of Label Tulip, is stepping down. We will all miss her terribly, and wanted to create a little tribute in her honor. All of the Tulip Girls created an 8x8 page for Cindee. Now that we're all done, we'll be popping these in the mail to her so that she can make a little album for herself. Thank you so much for all you've done for us, Cindee! The kits, the opportunities, the community... it has all been amazing! And, I'm sure that Cathy will continue on with the tradition in the true spirit of what Label Tulip has already become! Here is my tribute for Cindee...
Last, but not least, the full reveal of my project kit! For everyone that guessed a spring-themed wall-hanging... you were correct!
If you love scrappy home decor projects as much as I do, you can still purchase the kit here. With your purchase, you will receive full instructions for making the hanging pictured here. Likewise, if any of you have purchased the kits and have questions for me... please feel free to ask away! :0)
Well, I am off to enjoy my "vacation" some more. I've been taking lots of pictures that I'll share in the coming days (and print out for plenty of scrapping with the upcoming April kits). ;0) Oh, and I have a new project up at the Pink Paislee blog. Check it out!
Hazel had a great time competing, checking out the aquarium, eating some fabulous (and some not-so-fabulous) seafood, and swimming with her teammates at an indoor pool. And hopefully, it won't be long before we can do something fun like that again. Now, I have the kids at my great aunt and uncle's beach condo for a week. Unfortunately, Bryan had to return home... such is the military life. I'm trying to enjoy myself here. It's a bit of a stretch to actually call this a vacation with a going-through-the-terrible-two's-year-old and a precocious almost-five-year-old in tow. But, I'm trying... I'm really trying here, people. It isn't often that we get very far outside of Fayetteville, might as well make the best of it.
Speaking of the best of it... Label Tulip's March kit, in my opinion, was the best of the best. I LOVED everything in it! It is one of my favorite kits that we've had in quite some time. I just wish I had more time to play with it, and wasn't rushing through everything trying to get ready for this trip. (Did I mention that I had to help make 60 goodie bags for the girls, a bunch of signs, and decorate some cow bells... all last week?) Nonetheless, I did get to make some pages that are my personal faves I've made in quite some time!
I lovie this page! Love, love, love it!!! I'd been dying to get my hands on some of those new Gal Friday papers, and they were even more perfect in person. I'd been hanging onto these old photos of Hazel's first time on a bike, and that little biker babe from the Sass papers was the perfect accent for these photos. Said biker gal had the whole "Dick and Jane" look about her... thus, the title "See Hazel Ride." It's my favorite page by, like, a lot a lot. ;0)
Now, these cheer photos have been kinda' a bitch to work with. Their team colors (blue, gold, silver and white) aren't colors that I normally scrap with. And this kit, at first glance, didn't really look like something I could pull it off with. But, lo and behold, there WERE bits and pieces that came together nicely to work with the photos. In all of my harried craziness before the trip, I hadn't realized that I accidentally rolled the monthly challenge and the member lift all in to one layout. Doh! And, of course, I didn't realize it until I was uploading photos of my pages late at night in our hotel room... scrapping supplies hundreds of miles away... no time to create another page. So, it is what it is.
But, our monthly challenge was to use product packaging on our layouts. These days, it seems like some of the packaging that our products come in are just as pretty as the products themselves. And, in this economy, who isn't trying to stretch their scrapping budget further? I know I am, and using up that packaging is one fix for that problem... not to mention all that excess packaging isn't just being dumped into a landfill. ;0) My packaging uses were as such...
I used the acetate indexing from the "Express Thought" LT exclusive stamp. The way that the photo on the layout was oriented, I needed the LT exclusive to be flipped in the other direction. Rather than stamping, I cut out the thought bubble from the index packaging it came with. Then, I flipped it over to be facing the direction I needed and adhered it, using small dots of Diamond Glaze around the edge, to a piece of patterned paper. Once the Diamond Glaze dried, I trimmed the excess patterned paper from around the edges. Now the thought bubble is all ready for a title!
And, Prima seems to have some of the most beautiful packaging these days. I trimmed out the dies-cut vine edges from the Flower Frillies packaging, and used them as fancy photo corners with some added sparkles for this layout.
This month, we had the added honor, as a team, of creating a little farewell book for Cindee. Our esteemed leader, since the launch of Label Tulip, is stepping down. We will all miss her terribly, and wanted to create a little tribute in her honor. All of the Tulip Girls created an 8x8 page for Cindee. Now that we're all done, we'll be popping these in the mail to her so that she can make a little album for herself. Thank you so much for all you've done for us, Cindee! The kits, the opportunities, the community... it has all been amazing! And, I'm sure that Cathy will continue on with the tradition in the true spirit of what Label Tulip has already become! Here is my tribute for Cindee...
Last, but not least, the full reveal of my project kit! For everyone that guessed a spring-themed wall-hanging... you were correct!
If you love scrappy home decor projects as much as I do, you can still purchase the kit here. With your purchase, you will receive full instructions for making the hanging pictured here. Likewise, if any of you have purchased the kits and have questions for me... please feel free to ask away! :0)
Well, I am off to enjoy my "vacation" some more. I've been taking lots of pictures that I'll share in the coming days (and print out for plenty of scrapping with the upcoming April kits). ;0) Oh, and I have a new project up at the Pink Paislee blog. Check it out!
Monday, March 9, 2009
beautiful.
That is the only way to describe the weather that we have been enjoying for the past few days. So beautiful, in fact, that I was so busy playing outside with the kids that I didn't have even the slightest urge to scrap (which explains the lack of any peeks or blog postings). But, in light of the fact that we are heading out for Hazel's national cheerleading competition and a vacation on Thursday, I thought I had better get it in gear pretty quickly. So, I have a couple of sneaks to share with you today, and will be back with a couple more before Thursday.
**The Love, Elsie chipboard frame in the 2nd peek is not part of the kit. It was just that one perfect touch that I had to add.**
Now, to get down to business on picking a winner for the Love, Elsie Recipe Idea Box! You all had some excellent (and a couple CORRECT) guesses about what the project kit will be. Unfortunately, you'll have to wait until reveal night (Sunday, March 15th) to find out which guess was the correct one. ;0). Bwahahahaha! But, I still have a winner to announce today...
#15...
Jill said...
Is it an Easter/Spring Basket?
Whatever it might be, the sneak peaks are gorgeous!
March 4, 2009 9:53 PM
So, Jill, shoot me an e-mail at charmedgirlnc@gmail.com with your full name and address. I'll be sure to get your book in the mail soon!
Well, I've got a to-do list a mile long (including some scrapping) to get done before Thursday, so I had better get on it! Laters!
**The Love, Elsie chipboard frame in the 2nd peek is not part of the kit. It was just that one perfect touch that I had to add.**
Now, to get down to business on picking a winner for the Love, Elsie Recipe Idea Box! You all had some excellent (and a couple CORRECT) guesses about what the project kit will be. Unfortunately, you'll have to wait until reveal night (Sunday, March 15th) to find out which guess was the correct one. ;0). Bwahahahaha! But, I still have a winner to announce today...
#15...
Jill said...
Is it an Easter/Spring Basket?
Whatever it might be, the sneak peaks are gorgeous!
March 4, 2009 9:53 PM
So, Jill, shoot me an e-mail at charmedgirlnc@gmail.com with your full name and address. I'll be sure to get your book in the mail soon!
Well, I've got a to-do list a mile long (including some scrapping) to get done before Thursday, so I had better get on it! Laters!
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Wednesday already?
Eek! How did that happen? Every time I sat down to post the winner for the wreath, it seems like something got in the way of my time. Then, our electricity went out for nearly 8 hours yesterday. Not the best time to have that happen, considering it was only in the 30's yesterday. Brrrrrrr!
But, I'm back. And, not only do I have the winner to announce... but, I have some sneaks of the project kit that I designed exclusively for Label Tulip this month (along with another RAK)! First thing's first, let's announce the winner of the wreath! Drumroll please...
From the random integer widget: #2!
Chasing Keegan said...
Well, I have been coming to your blog for awhile now and to be honest I am more of an appreciative lurker then commenter. However, I just wanted to say that your work (this is not a brown noser remark) is really great! Being a military wife myself with one child, I am getting more and more things done, that I didn't once have time for and I figured if you could do it then so could I. So I leave this comment to let you know how much your updates mean to me. Can't wait to see what you have next...
So, "Chasing Keegan"... send me your address, and I will get the wreath in the mail to you as soon as possible! :0)
Now, how about some eye candy? Beginning this month, Label Tulip will be selling project kits designed exclusively for LT by our fabulous Tulip Girls! My project kit will be featured for the month of March, and here are a couple of peeks:
Anyone hazard to guess as to what this project is? Well, I have recently found myself in possession of an extra (unopened) copy of the Love, Elsie Recipe Idea Box.
I know it's a bit older of a book, but if haven't managed to snag one for yourself yet, I thought I would share. After all, I don't need two of them! ;0) To be entered to win, just leave a comment guessing what the project kit will be. Your answer doesn't have to be correct to win... you just have to take a whack at it. ;0) I'll be back on Friday to announce a winner (and share some more LT peeks)! See you then!
But, I'm back. And, not only do I have the winner to announce... but, I have some sneaks of the project kit that I designed exclusively for Label Tulip this month (along with another RAK)! First thing's first, let's announce the winner of the wreath! Drumroll please...
From the random integer widget: #2!
Chasing Keegan said...
Well, I have been coming to your blog for awhile now and to be honest I am more of an appreciative lurker then commenter. However, I just wanted to say that your work (this is not a brown noser remark) is really great! Being a military wife myself with one child, I am getting more and more things done, that I didn't once have time for and I figured if you could do it then so could I. So I leave this comment to let you know how much your updates mean to me. Can't wait to see what you have next...
So, "Chasing Keegan"... send me your address, and I will get the wreath in the mail to you as soon as possible! :0)
Now, how about some eye candy? Beginning this month, Label Tulip will be selling project kits designed exclusively for LT by our fabulous Tulip Girls! My project kit will be featured for the month of March, and here are a couple of peeks:
Anyone hazard to guess as to what this project is? Well, I have recently found myself in possession of an extra (unopened) copy of the Love, Elsie Recipe Idea Box.
I know it's a bit older of a book, but if haven't managed to snag one for yourself yet, I thought I would share. After all, I don't need two of them! ;0) To be entered to win, just leave a comment guessing what the project kit will be. Your answer doesn't have to be correct to win... you just have to take a whack at it. ;0) I'll be back on Friday to announce a winner (and share some more LT peeks)! See you then!
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