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Growing

Arg. My mind is in a fog today. Only one word stands to describe me at this very moment - Fragile. It may have something to do with the fact that I didn't retire until 2:00am last evening. I've taken in about six hours of sleep total in the last twenty-four hours. Usually, I'm not one to feel sleep deprived, but last night was an exception. I obviously needed to get some shut-eye and I didn't allow that to happen. Instead, while CNN was blaring in the background (because I'm trying to get the lowdown on McCain's running mate), I sat at my scrapbook desk and put together a layout. Sometimes, I fail to recognize the giant size clock that sits above my desk. Whether it be ignorance or my natural oblivious tendencies, I don't even think to look at it while scrapbooking. I simply choose to ignore it. Laugh. So, here I am, drowsy and attempting to update my blog. If you find a misspelled word or a major flaw of some sort, no worries. Blame it on lack of sleep. Smile.

I'm starting to understand why scrapbookers often feel behind on scrapbooking layouts. Ethan is growing at the speed of light. Changes happen quickly and I can't keep up...not even with a digital camera. I remind myself that not every moment needs documenting. I never scrapbook in a chronological fashion anyway and I'm not a parent that focuses on traditional "milestones". I record mostly day-to-day events and put those to paper instead. There's usually less pressure to "get pages done" while scrapbooking this way, but keeping up with day-to-day stuff presents it's own unique set of challenges. Photos quickly outdate themselves and events come and go without notice. It's easy to fill up a hardrive with images while collecting piles of photographs on my desk. There's a certain amount of stress in wanting to keep up with everything I photograph, but something tells me that "keeping up" is misleading. There isn't a finish line in life. Life is constantly evolving and changing. There will always be something to preserve and share on paper. It's impossible to "stay ahead". It will never happen, but I can find a happy medium where I feel ok with what I've accomplished. So far, I think I'm faring well with the ongoing's of Ethan's life...though if next week I found him six inches taller and able to read, I'd certainly feel behind. Really behind. Laugh.

The layout above reflects just how fast my little guy is "Growing Up". He's really been making a lot of developmental strides lately and one of the biggest changes I've noticed this last month or so is his appearance. His face is maturing and he's increasing in height. It's remarkable to watch these changes happen in such a short period of time. Kids grow so fast!

"Jack's World" by Cosmo Cricket, is one of my favorite scrapbook lines from CHA Summer. I just purchased the line along with the matching chipboard and die-cut shapes. This is a die-cut/chipboard car from the line. It's super oh-so-cute! It's playful nature is perfect for the layout. I did a little landscaping around the car. The black rub-on tree is Maya Road and the yellow cloud rub-on is Cosmo. Anybody want to go for a ride in this cool green car? The only thing it's missing is a driver. Couldn't resolve that issue..didn't have a driver to put behind the wheel. This would of been a great way to showcase a photo of someone...shrink the photo and fit it beneath the window of the die-cut car.

Believe it or not, the bubbles are coming from the car...similar to car exhaust.  I know, how crazy is this idea? Remember, it was late in the evening when I worked on this layout. Laugh. Actually, I chose bubbles because of their playful nature. Thinking of bubbles exiting the back of a car reminds me of some of the fun cartoons that Ethan and I watch together in the early morning hours.

 

I haven't done a lot with buttons lately. As a collector of buttons, I feel like I should be using them more often. I absolutely love them. On this layout, I surrounded the journal circle with pink & red small size buttons using my favorite adhesive, "Glue Dots".

On a quick last note, I would like to thank Karen Russell, Barbara (what's your link Barbara?),  Penny Smith,  and my good friend, Melissa Phillips, for their kind gestures and words. Thank you so much ladies! Truly appreciated. And also, to the rest of you that read my blog and in in response, offer me endless support and hugs. Thank you everyone!

There have been inquiries from some of you concerning "project kits". I would like to let you guys know that I've considered (on a very casual basis) putting together the occasional "project kit" and selling them via my blog. I haven't necessarily organized all the details just yet, but it's something I'm currently working on. Stay tuned for more info.

Thinking Ahead...

It's finally done. I can't believe it. This was a large undertaking for me. I hadn't expected it to be this involved and detailed, but the album took on a life of its own. To be totally honest with all of you, this album brought a lot of emotions to surface for me. These last two weeks have been a roller coaster ride and it's still going strong. I've entered a new phase of grieving and I truly believe the project initiated it. As I sorted through old photos of Eric, myself, and Ethan, there was this awakening of sorts that life is far from what it used to be. Right now, my life is in serious limbo. With the realization that Eric isn't returning, I'm starting to wonder where this new life is going to take me over the next year or two. There's a ton of uncertainty and fear that I've been feeling since starting this album. Now that I'm fully aware of my circumstances, I wonder how I will make it on my own from this point forward, without Eric? Sure, I've come this far, but in reality, it's doesn't feel "far". The "big picture" is creeping up on me and I'm thinking about new housing and Ethan's education. These are big steps and it's become clear to me that they're going to happen in the next few years or so. Right now, I can't sustain us here, in a house that was built for a large family. I'm not even sure I want to be here anymore. I'm craving a new beginning...something different. I'm thinking more about the future than I ever have before. Maybe it's because I'm finally in a place within the grieving process that allows me to think ahead instead of constantly contemplating the past. I'm not really sure, but it sounds plausible. Here are those last two pages from the album:

I adhered an envelope to the last page of the album. It holds extra journaling that I wasn't able to fit in the album...about three pages worth.

Just Dad. Completed. Moving Forward....

Ethan loves cars. Just recently, he started bringing them into the bathtub. He's actually "pretending" for the first time using his little miniature vehicles. He drives the cars back and forth along the edge of the tub for long periods of time. He's making car noises and crashing them into the water like cascading car bombs. He has them navigating paths on the bathtub wall and along the surface of the water. All the while, he concentrates heavily on the car he's playing with while in the tub. It's all too fun to watch. I took a couple photos of him tonight while playing his usual pretend car games. Can't wait to scrap these. He's getting soooo big! My little guy...he,he. Makes his mom happy. Him and his cars. Honk! Honk!

Almost done....

A little late night birdie told me that I made the Sassafras design team. Something about my name on a blog and a welcoming hedgehog. Seriously, I'm loven' the news. I think it's wonderful. I wasn't expecting it because a lot of people tried out for the team. I knew they were adding only a couple of new designers and signed up on a whim thinking it wouldn't really happen. I feel very fortunate because I know Sassafras is beloved by so many scrapbookers. I've been an avid fan of their wares for a few years now and it's been a heavenly dream of mine to be on their design team. Their designs are some of my favorites within the industry. So, I'm sending out a huge thank-you to Sassafras for selecting me to be a part of their design team. If you haven't already, be sure to check out their latest releases, which should be up for grabs really soon. They're continuing on with the die-cut edges and cute animals. Gotta luv that.

There's been no "couch time" for me these last few nights. I've made it an effort to complete the mini album I've been working on for the last week or so. I have two pages left that need finishing and I plan to work on those tomorrow evening. The last two pages will be mostly storytelling with an addition of a pocket to hold extra journaling pages.

 

I took this photo of Eric while on our last camping trip together at Gooseberry Falls. He's standing on the shores of Lake Superior amongst rock and trees. Both of us were climbing around and investigating the terrain. It's beautiful up there. We left our problems at home while on the trip (this was four months before Eric passed away). We had great time, as usual.

I used this photo to represent Eric's liking of being alone. He was a prideful loner. He liked his surroundings quiet and peaceful...He kept things simple. He didn't involve himself in a lot of social activities. We were both that way while together. We didn't hang out with huge crowds, just with ourselves. We didn't mind it this way, it worked out perfectly for the both of us. I sort of think that's the primary reason the two of us bonded as well as we did.

One of my favorite elements on the page is the letter "L". It's a 7 Gypsies Rub-On Alpha set titled "Monogram". I applied the "L" to a vanilla scallop circle (I have quite a few scallop circle punches) and distressed the circle edges with Ranger Distress Ink (walnut) using a round orange sponge. I adhered the scallop circle to a slightly larger black cardstock circle because it's one of the focal points of the page. I then applied a Hambly Red rub-on circle frame underneath the letter.

Something I haven't noted yet is that I added quite a few transparency pages to the album. It does come with a couple of transparency pages, but because I included a lot of gold in the design of the album, I added some Hambly gold  frames to supplement what was already there.  They're obviously not as "thick" as the ones that come with the album, but I'm ok with that. I think the transparencies provide an additional window in which to express further detail onto the pages that sit beneath them. I only added a few extra elements to each of the transparency pages. I mostly used rub-ons and not much else.

Below the black scallop chipboard circle, I laid down two layers of rub-ons. One is yellow and the other is black. Before adhering the chipboard circle to the page, I sanded it with a nail file (wide size file), outlined the interior frame using a white gel pen and gold gel pen, and placed a few dots of gold stickle glue inside each of the scallops. I then added a two layer butterfly. The butterfly is from Heidi Swapp. The bottom layer is a dotted thick cardstock version of the butterfly and the top layer is a dotted transparency version of the butterfly. I kept the bottom butterfly wings flat and creased the top wings out from the page.

The large scallop chipboard circle is from Maya Road. I painted it Forest Green, backed it with pattern paper, applied a Jenny Bowlin flower rub-on to the center, along with a large size Doodlebug rhinestone.

The word "thoughts" is a Scenic Route rub-on. With the help of my handy-dandy multi-size circle template from "Template Designs" (You can find them at your local office supply store), I traced a circle around the word "thoughts" using a Slick Writer (American Crafts). I can't draw a perfect circle for the life of me, so I depend on my template to make it happen. It's one of those supply items I can't do without.

The large photo of Eric and Ethan is one of Eric's last moments "fully interacting" with Ethan (having the ability to hold Ethan and right up next to his face). I remember this moment vividly. We were sitting in the office and I felt compelled to grab a few photos of the two boys together. I'm not quite sure what instilled the idea to photograph this moment, but it felt necessary at the time. Eric was entertaining Ethan with the usual wide smiles and funny noises. In response, Ethan giggled and smiled back at his dad. Following this interaction, I took a bunch of pictures of Ethan on Eric's lap, both boys facing me. I'll never forget this exchange of father & son. A perfect way to finish the last pages of the mini album, "Just Dad".

Once again, I used my circle template to draw circles around the mini stamped flowers (Memory Box) along the bottom of the page. I neatly added tiny dots around each circle using a fine tip pen. The tiny scallop border beneath the photo is also from Memory Box-isn't it cute?! Small stamps are great for mini albums..they can easily feel lost on a large 12 x 12 page.

Everything on this page was an experiment in progress. Seriously. I'm not always quite sure what to expect when I'm scrapbooking. Things "just happen", as is the case here. First came the circle label, the hambly transparency and then another circle label (on top of the transparency). I added the ribbon, chipboard flower (KI Memories), word stickers, and acorn rub-ons (Cosmo Cricket-they're the leaves sitting beneath the flower) last. The journaling was done on Vanilla cardstock and I adhered a thin Black cardstock border above the journal strip to stabilize the assortment of items on this side of the page.

I cut a little window from the transparency to make room for the title, "Together". I then added a 7 Gypsies ornate rectangle rub-on frame around the opening. I really like how it turned out. A total surprise.

Took this photo of Ethan today. It was the end of the day and we were just getting him ready for bed. One of my favorite facial expressions he often makes when something grabs hold of his attention. A total doll. Good Night everyone!

One Page + Few Extras

I had high hopes to complete the mini album this week. Sadly, I wasn't able to complete the album, though I did get another page done since the last post. Part of the reason for the slow down is because last evening, I didn't feel up to scrapbooking. I sat in my living room watching Super Nanny and Carrier for two hours. It hadn't been my plan to sit my rear on the couch for that long, but it was either that or climb into bed early. I knew there was no way I would fall asleep early, so I chose to watch the tube instead. I was feeling rather "blue" last night. Kept thinking about Eric and all the things he's going to miss seeing as Ethan gets bigger and bigger. Already, Ethan's made a lot of progress in the development arena. He's turned into Mr.Chatty and loves to interact more one on one with me. He's such a funny little guy. I know that as Ethan continues to grow, there will be greater milestones in Ethan's life that Eric will miss. He won't physically be there when Ethan rides a bike for the first time or when Ethan steps foot on a bus for the first time to go to school. It's a loss that results in a kind a pain that's far worse than any kind of pain I've ever felt before. I want so badly for Eric to be around for these kinds of events. Without him, I'm worried they'll feel incomplete in some way...aren't dad's suppose to be there to teach their kids how to ride a bike or wave when they watch their kids get on a bus for their first day at school? I know I will find a way to celebrate these kinds of milestones without Eric with us, though it still feels unfair. So, as I sat on my couch last night, I did nothing. Absolutely nothing. It seemed the ideal activity at the time. Today, I'm doing a ton better. I felt like a lump on a log this morn'en, but that's because I didn't fall asleep till midnight last night. Go figure. Maybe it was all that tv action. I did finish up a page this afternoon. Take a look:

 

Supplies: My Minds' Eye Confetti Collection ("Surprise Girlfriends Polka Dots/Pink Paper"), Violet Cardstock, Doodlebug Designs Paper Frills ("Ladybug"), Amy Butler Lotus Tea Box ("Full Moon Dots Flat Paper"), Magenta Cardstock, Creative Imaginations Narratives Transparency by Karen Russell, Jenny Bowlin Studio Mini Black Bingo Cards, Hero Arts Clear Design Stamps ("Asian Elements"), MME 29th Market Collection ("Happy"), Amy Butler Lotus Tea Box Die-Cut Cardstock ("Ephemera"), K & Company Glitter Stickers ("Glitter Alphabet-Green") Pink Paislee Press Ons ("Vintage Moon"), & Scenic Route Rub-Ons ("Afterthoughts").

Many of you are probably wondering where I picked up that beautiful butterfly..it's actually a digital element that I purchased at O'Scraps a few days ago. You can find them here. I printed them up on Kodak Premium Matte Photo Paper. I'm cutting them out by hand as needed. When purchased, they're each nearly 8" - 10" in height and width. I downsized them to 2" x 2" so I could fit all of them on a 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper. Here they are below:

Speaking of digital elements, I've sort of grown addicted to digital pattern paper and elements. I'm not by any means a digital scrapbooker. I don't plan on going this route because I've never been one to do a lot of scrapbooking on my computer, though some of the paper and elements I've been seeing lately are very cool. I picked up a bunch of kits and paper pattern sets a few days ago. I started printing them yesterday using my HP Printer. See samples below:

The colors are extremely rich. This is because the patterns are printed on matte photo paper. Part of me wishes I had a wide format printer, but I think the cost of the refills would put me out of business entirely. Plus, the 8.5" x 11" sheets are good enough. I'm just excited to have another means of purchasing pattern paper. I'm a pattern paper junky. One can never have enough pattern paper. That's always been my philosophy. The digital paper patterns above were purchased from these locations: O'Scraps & We are Storytellers.

On another note, I've been playing around with making my own fabric brads. Today, I finally went out and bought a few button making kits at the local fabric store, which may be used to make your own brads (as seen all over Etsy and at Heather Bailey's blog). When I got them home, I immediately started working on a few brads using my fabric collection from my quilting days. Here's a small sample:

Can't wait to use them on a future project. So cute!

Lastly, have I been living on a another planet? I just realized that Amy Butler's K & Company scrapbook line has a ton more to offer than what was available at Michaels. Check out these die-cut butterflies!

There's a ton more Amy Butler product that I've not seen before at the K & Company website, here. Maybe one of you knows more about it than me. I could be totally clueless. The only people that sell the new Amy Butler lines in Minnesota are Michaels. So, if you know of anybody else selling these lines, please let me know. Thanks!

Thank you to everyone for all the kind comments in response to the mini album. They're truly appreciated! Have a great day you guys! Take care.

 

Just Dad Mini Album

It's really that simple. A small album about "Dad". There are many qualities that I admire about Eric. I'm passionate about sharing those qualities with Ethan. I know that one day, Ethan will start asking about Dad. They'll be many questions and I've already planned to start with the basics. Keep things simple and then work are way up to "bigger questions". I've been working on this album for the last three days. It's incomplete. I'm a quarter of a way done with the album. I've put my heart and soul into it. Looking at these pictures reminds me of better days when Dad was around and laughter was second nature. I've chosen photos that captured Eric as he was on a "day-to-day" basis. Eric was a genuine guy with a big heart and an insatiable appetite for helping others. He was also the kind of guy that was relaxed, easy going, could play video games and chess for hours on end, and knew how to make everybody laugh...including my family, which is sometimes a tough sell. Laugh. He was a passionate geek and extremely intelligent. He started computer programming at the age of thirteen. He graduated with an IT degree in Software Engineering from the University of Minnesota. He was proficient in math and physics. His specialty was color science. He managed our computers at home and kept them in good order..unlike myself. I'm certain there's more than one virus plaguing my computer right now and I know nothing about them. Laugh. I'm hoping that one day Ethan will grow up to be just like his father. Of course, I want Ethan to be entirely himself, but genetics has already proven that we grow up to be a lot like our parents. I think Ethan is tremendously lucky..his father has already provided the most precious gift any person could ever receive; life. I'm grateful for that and there's a lot I want to share with Ethan about his father, including what's in this album. Take a look below:

Supplies: Creative Imaginations Easel Album, Jenny Bowlin Studio Rub-Ons (Transferware Flowers), KI Memories Stickers (Ladidah), Making Memories Mini Shimmer Alphas (Aqua Metro) & Felt Flowers, Paper Source Green/White Label, Luxe Simple Labels (Lime), Pink Paislee Vintage Moon Pattern Paper (Night Owl) & RangerStickles (Gold) .

I know some of you have asked me for a supply list to be included along side posted projects here at my blog. I'm going to attempt to do my best at listing supplies. It's important to note that I use a hefty amount of product when I create projects. It's for this reason I normally don't provide supply lists. I would like to improve on this of course, so please bare with me as I go about making this change. I'm going to do my almighty best at this new deal. It took me twenty minutes to complete the list above. Laugh. If anyone knows a simple way of doing this, email me. I could sure use some assistance in this arena.

 

There's a big'ol window on the cover of this mini album. With some magical thinking and a heavy dose of uncertainty, I decided to adhere elements to the back of the window so they would show in the front. That left me with quite the mess on the back, so I covered the back of the cover with a large sheet of pattern paper and used it to journal an introduction, which you'll see below:

Supplies: American Crafts Chipboard (Bird-unable to find you some), Making Memories Elizabeth Border & Tag Stickers, Collage Press Journaling Cards, Making Memories Die-Cut Journaling Stickers, Making Memories Tiny Alphas, Heather Bailey Freshcut Stamps (Icon Stamps), and Luxe Ledger Paper.

The American Craft Chipboard embellishments are great basics to add to any collection, though I thought this bird could use some "shimmer". I glittered him up and added him to the page as shown.

Supplies: Silk Ribbon (Specialty Ribbon Shop), Jenny Bowlin Mini Bingo Card (Black), Doodlebug Paper Frills (Swimming Pool), Making Memories Jack Felt Shapes, Doodlebug Rhinestones (Liemade), Scenic Route Sonoma Labels, Classic Kraft Digital Labels, & Heidi Grace Small Alpha Rub-Ons (retired).

My first try at sewing on paper wasn't all that great. I sort of feared it from that point on, but decided to give another go at it with some folded wide silk ribbon and a chipboard page. It actually went really well this time around. I switched to a new needle size and it works really slick. Think you'll be seeing more sewing on my layouts and maybe some fabric too.

I added all the embellishments after sewing on the ribbon. I actually cut most of the embellishments in half, including the flowers, to fit them under the ribbon. The butterfly is from a die-cut at Archivers that I used on a pattern sheet of paper. I outlined the butterfly using a .5mm Zig Writer and filled in the body using a gold gel pen. Lastly, I printed up some labels via the home printer on Kodak Premium Photo Paper (Matte). I cut them out and now I'm using them on projects...starting to love digital elements :)

Going to take a break on the supply list at this point. I would like to focus on some techniques and show you some of my fave new products that have recently captured my attention instead.

I've grown addicted to textured rub-ons lately. I've been buying them up and slowly incorporating more into my collection over time. Most packs come with multiple rub-on textures, such as glitter, flock, and foil. The black textured rub-on above is from 7 Gypsies. Rumor has it that Two Peas has every single 7 Gypsies product in stock right now. Figure it may be a good source if you're thinking about grabbing yourself some in the near future. There are a number of different manufacturers coming out with textured rub-ons, including We R' Memory Keepers, and a few others. I'm hoping they don't go away just yet, but you know how quickly this industry changes. Would like to see more them. They're a lot of fun!

I created a focal point picture on this page by framing one of the photos with a Making Memories die-cut frame. I cut a part of the frame off to better fit my image. It turned out to be a simple way to frame a photo.

This is by far my favorite page in the album so far. This is actually a picture series of Eric attempting to show Ethan the freezer, literally. Laugh. Look at him, he's about to put the little guy in the drawer (don't worry, he was just being a goof!). These photos really spoke to me and I think that's why I enjoyed creating this page. It was one of those quintessential "happy" moments we shared as a family. Look at how little Ethan was?! Can you believe it?! My cute boys. Love'em.

Hoot! Hoot! Ok, really, how could I not say that? Laugh. It's getting late and my mind is running low on fuel. Bare with me. Believe it or not, the silver shimmer frame is a Doodlebug "Stick With It" adhesive transfer. In plain English, it's a double sided white sticker that's covered with a strong adhesive and just about anything sticks to it, including lots and lots of glitter. I covered the frame with a Platinum color glitter from Martha Stewart. It sticks really well and note that you can't see the white background of the sticker.

I did cut a piece of cardstock to fit inside the frame. I added the owl stamp (Hero Arts) and "love you" metal label to fill in the area.

On the top left corner of the page, I applied an American Crafts Remarks flower sticker along with a Hambly gold transparency swirl (which I cut from a Hambly Gold Transparency Frame). I like how the two elements play off each other. Both provide depth and interest. You don't really expect these two very similar elements to come together in the same space. Both lend a sense of playfulness, which supports the feel of the page.

Have a great day everyone! It's time to retire. Take care.

 

Just Dad

There is nothing like waking up in the early morning hours after staying up the night before till 1:30am. It's my own fault. I'm exceptionally attached to my late night hours because they're the only hours of the day that are solely mine. Ethan's asleep by 7:30pm. After he falls asleep, I rush myself to finish late night chores, put on my pajamas, and get busy doing scrapbook stuff. I don't typically scrapbook during the day..there's no time. I usually "work" during the day while Ethan's in daycare (which is two to three times a week). These last few weeks, I've been working on a surprise project. Can't mention anything about it just yet, but will soon. This project has been consuming a lot of my afternoons. It's all part of a new plan I put together for the next upcoming year. With so many of my afternoons dedicated to work and new projects, I've been spending more time scrapbooking in the late, late hours of the day. I don't mind so much, though I find I lack focus after about 9:00pm at night.  My creative drive slows down to about a turtle's pace. I know many artists who thrive on a creative night life. I used to be one of them, that's until I entered the world of parenthood. As a working mom, any late night energy I once had when I was young, has completely diminished. It doesn't stop me from scrapbooking though. Night time is my time. If I could buy evening hours by the jar at the local supermarket, I would and I'd be willing to pay top dollar for it too! I think a lot of mom's would agree with me on this one. There just isn't enough time to go around in a 24 hour day.

I found this image at the "Print & Pattern" blog a week or two ago. These are illustrations by Lesley Grainger. I'm crazy about her outlandishly bright color palette and her combination of patterns and real life imagery. I've seen her illustrations on various kinds of products in the past. I was unaware she had a blog, so I've bookmarked it for future reference. Her work is inspiring to me and it's already started me on a new project; Ethan's "Just Dad" mini album:

 

I knew I had to create this album using the new Creative Imaginations Easel Album I purchased last week. I mentioned that I was going to work with this album a few posts below..well, it's actually happening. I combined it with a really bright color palette, as inspired by Lesley's illustrations. I could of easily went with a traditional male oriented color palette. I chose not to..I'm not one who necessarily follows design rules all the time. Plus, Eric is a high energy guy with an up beat personality and great sense of humor. Color reflects all this and more.

Here's a snippet of my supplies for creating this album. Right now, I've completed two pages. My goal is to complete a page a day. Above is the cover of the album. I'll continue to post pictures of the album pages as I make progress on the project.

Enough Paper? Maybe. As I always say, more is better than less...at least for me. Plus, having color in front of me motivates me to scrapbook more. I love being at my desk and seeing all the paper.

I've made a few rearrangements in my scrapbook space. Accessibility is a big deal to me. I brought all my small drawer sets to my desk. They used to sit on a shelf six feet from the desk. Having these drawers more readily available to me makes scrapbooking ten times easier, and encourages me to use product I would otherwise forget to use. The bottom drawers contain chipboard pieces, transparency die-cuts, and buttons. The top drawers contains paper die-cuts and note-cards/journal labels. Everything is sorted by color. The whole set-up is easy to manage and use. It also provides me more options for projects...and because I'm always layering lots of "stuff" on my pages, having greater options is ideal.

Lastly, note the Cropper Hopper underneath the desk..that would be all my pattern paper. I actually clean out my pattern paper collection once every two months. I keep my pattern paper collection small and tidy. The Cropper Hopper works great for holding my small pattern paper collection. I sort my pattern paper by color. I've also reserved a folder for "multi-color" pattern paper (for those pieces that don't necessarily fall into one color category).

Owls..a few

It's the little things that make me happy. Who doesn't get excited when something comes in the mail that's the shape of a box or large bag? Today, I got a package from boygirlparty.com . I ordered their new "Treetop" Journal.  I found their website through "Renegade". If you've not heard about Renegade (Home Companion did an article on their Chicago show a month or so ago), you're missing out. I actually located Renegade's Handmade shop while in Chicago. I came across it by accident. Lucky me cause I've never been to a place like it and it's very cool. They specialize in selling unique handmade crafted goods created by local artists. Besides their store, they host a handful of craft shows across the US. If you go to their website, you'll find the locations and times for each show. You'll also find online links to various artisans that participate in the show'(s). I located boygirlparty.com through Renegade's website. Susie Ghahremani, owner of boygirlparty, creates illustrations that have a whimsical, retro-ish nature. I'm fond of her owls and cats. They're so darn cute! When visiting her site, be sure to check out everything. There's lots to see and it's all very entertaining. I feel fortunate to have found her work. Here's the album and a post card she sent along with the album:

On a completely different note, I ran across some Karen Foster product today that I must of missed while attending CHA. I brought a few pieces home..I know, Ethan's not in school yet. I figure I'll come up with an alternative way to use the embellishments..use them on a layout/project that reflects "learning" instead of "going back to school".

It's a short post today. I'm off to finish a sketch for Pencil Lines and get my tutorial done for Scrap Magie. I'll post links once both items go live! My guest spot on Pencil Lines will happen in September. The tutorial will be up mid/late August.

Recollection

A few days ago, I received a email from a young widow like myself. She found my blog through a friend and felt compelled to email me her story. This happens from time to time as young widows often feel alone and isolated. We reach out for each other and connect almost immediately every time. I've emailed a number of young widows myself and have met a lot of amazing widows, many of which serve as an example of hope for me. We share the same pain, fear, sadness, frustrations, anger, fatigue, and oh so much more. We're a club nobody really wants to belong to, but for most, it's not a choice. So, when widows locate one another, we usually bond immediately. Through the bonding process, we share stories and tears. Honesty is at the forefront of almost every conversation that happens between two widows. We spare nothing. As widows, we're guarded in the beginning. Every wall that stood previous to the loss is gone. We feel vulnerable and lost. Terribly alone. Not a lot of people in day to day society really understand the changes that come after losing a spouse. One feels a sense of disconnect from the world after this sort of loss. Singled out. I ask myself "What is the role of widow anyway?"  The term is often misleading. There are a lot of stereotypes that exist in our society about "widows"; she/he is old, has been married for forty plus years, and has lived a full life. My usual response.."I wish." Laugh. The reality of widowhood is that it doesn't discriminate between old or young, though young widows may not be as common. This accounts for why I've grown close with a number of young widows these last few months.  I'm truly not alone as a young widow. There are many of us. We share, we listen, and we grow together. For the first time last night, I shared the story of Eric's last few months with another widow...the one that emailed me a few days ago. I wrote down words that described those last eight weeks..it was painful, heartfelt, and lead to an outpouring of tears. It also was healing..I opened a door, looked inside, and embraced what I found. For months, I've been avoiding thinking about those last eight weeks. It's only natural of course considering the immense amount of distress that comes from recalling the past. I'm glad I was able to verbalize it though with someone who truly understands. Thank you to all those that listen.

I've been on the computer for a few hours printing up twenty plus images of Eric for a mini album I plan on finishing by next week. It's a reflection of Eric and his day to day life. I'll show peeks along the way while working on it. You may not see a layout here for a week or so. No worries. They'll be more after I finish this album. I'll be using the Creative Imaginations blue easel album that I showed a few posts ago for this mini album about Eric. It fits perfectly with the feel of the story/subject matter. I'll post pictures in a day or so..and I'll also have news of another matter in the very near future. Can't give any hints just yet, but will do so soon. Take care.

Congratulations to....

We're so excited here in the Middlecamp household because we're announcing the two winner's of this weekend's paper give-a-way! We've randomly selected two winner's and posted them below. Thank you to all of those that participated! Have a great night everyone!

Good Morning Christine,
Ethan is starting to look like such a little boy instead of a baby. Your purchases are so amazing. I too collect cards for no reason other than to collect them. I never send them or give them away, I make all of my cards.
I am crossing my fingers that you pick me for the paper source scraps. I don't live anywhere near a store and have been thinking of purchasing some paper to line the back of an antique china cabinet I purchased. Do you think their paper would work for that?
Have a groovy weekend!
Shaun

Posted by: Shaun Paddock | August 09, 2008 at 09:35 AM

Comment #2
Your scrapbooking inspires me! How about a little love for a country gal that will never make it to a Paper Source store??

Posted by: Christie | August 09, 2008 at 05:16 AM

*Please email me with your addresses and I'll ship the treasure packages out to you this week. Thanks!!

 

The Tale of the Lonely Lollypop

Between family and a trip to the Mall of America, our weekend was a full one. We spent some time yesterday perusing the mall. I took Ethan to the new Nickelodeon Amusement Park inside the mall. He's not "big enough" to ride the rides, but he still enjoys the scenery; lots and lots of kids, noise, food galore, lego land, toy stores, and more. It's a big place. Enough stimulation to last a kid a few days. While we were there, he rode the super mini merry-go-round (for wee little ones), stared in awe at all the rides, played with Thomas the Train at one of the local toy stores, hung out at lego land, and brought home a balloon and lollypop. You would of thought after all the action at the mall, that he would of konked out in the car on the way home..not so much.  Instead, he removed the outer packaging from his lollypop and got busy eating it. When we got home, he played outside some and while on one of his driving adventures, he unloaded his gigantic lollypop and set it on the driveway. He couldn't resist going back to it, but mom retired the lollypop to the garbage. I caught the whole event on camera and wanted to share some of the photos with you guys..here's how the story unfolds:

  

Bye, Bye Lollypop! He did enjoy it while it lasted. I suppose I could of removed the remaining wrapper and broke off the part touching the pavement..oh well, less sugar for later. Silly kid.

I did this layout for Prima over the weekend. Trying to finish some of my Summer theme layouts before September arrives. Like many of you, I have enough Summer pictures to last me two Winters, but most of them will end up in a standard photo album. I'm going to send a bunch off to be printed so I don't have to think about them. It's a great way to wrap up seasonal photos.

I went the "Blue" route with this layout. Actually, the photo of this layout has strong blue overtones, which I only mildly corrected using Photoshop. It's really not as "intense" as it looks. It has a lighter feel in person. Because these two girls spent most of the day swimming before I took this shot, I used a water theme for the layout. The background paper is Prima. I layered it with dark turquoise and pink paper. I then covered the pink area with hand cut bubbles using Heidi Grace pattern paper. I went on to add the photo and other embellishments, which you can see below:

Note the Paper Source Velour paper that I used on the layout? I used a small section of it only..with this kind of paper, less is better than more. I attempted to use "flocking" for a third time. The first two attempts weren't successful. Instead of using glue this time, I used Making Memories paint only and guess what, flocking sticks to that stuff like cement! The paint has to be "wet" in order for the flocking to adhere to it, but it works a ton better than glue. I used my pencil eraser as a stamp to create the dots before adding the flocking. I pressed the flocking into the paint and shook the remaining flocking from the page (you think glitter makes a mess, try flocking..holy cow! Can anyone say static cling?!).

These are some of my all time favorite flowers from Prima. They're sold in this packaging and are available in a variety of colors. I love the embossing on the flowers. It feels quirky and fun to me. You could easily paint or ink the embossed areas of the flower for added effect. I didn't do either this time around, but may give it a try next time I use these flowers. I layered the flowers using various size dark and light blue sprites. The combination of the two colors in an off/on pattern fits right in with the feel of the layout. I finished the large flower by topping it off with a "ripple" like button that resembles water.

The "Celebrate" chipboard title is also from Prima..notice a trend here? Laugh. I sanded it, distressed it with ink, and added Diamond Glaze to the title to make it appear "wet". It's hard to tell in the photo above, but instead of looking like a plain ol' piece of chipboard, it looks like a large epoxy sticker. Using Diamond Glaze is an economical way to create your own epoxy elements.

The word "Two" was created using some old Scenic Route large letter stickers. I've had them forever and I finally got around to using them. Feels good to use old product.

More Diamond Glaze, but this time on bubbles. Be warned though before using Diamond Glaze on anything distressed with ink, the Diamond Glaze can turn colors! Some of my Diamond Glaze dots look like mud puddles. Oops!

Off to conquer some online chores. Don't forget to leave a comment for the paper drawing in the post below. Thank you to those that have left comments! Can't wait to give away some Paper Source paper.