Here is Design Team Layout #2! The bottom page is actually supposed to sit next to the top page. I can't believe I've done like 2 LO's in 2 days. I am usually much slower than that and technically this is 3 pages because I normally do 1 page LO's. Ok, I know, way more than you need to know right? ºÜº This is our niece Lindsay playing in the leaves last Thanksgiving. Just on the spur of the moment she started picking up leaves and throwing them and laughing and playing. I started snapping pictures and got some pretty good shots of her I thought. Love the expressions on her face. Oh, and by the way, LO stands for layout. I figure I should just fill you in on the "scrapbook speak" since I tend to lapse into that when I am posting without realizing it! Ha.

Well tomorrow I may have a picture of the bedroom curtains finally in place. My husband got the window molding back up this evening!! Yay. It looks so cool!! We live in an 80 year old house, so it has the nice thick board moldings around the windows in the bedroom. LOVE that. I cannot wait to see those pink curtains on the windows!

It's late! Need to head to bed so I am ready for work in the morning. Hope you have a great day!

Blessings!

Well what you are looking at are a couple of firsts! This is the first LO I have made with my first Design Team Kit from Memories2You! This is also the first LO I ever did about my sister. Isn't she beautiful? She loves the color black and contemporary stuff so the pink and black and the geometric design of this American Crafts paper just seemed to call for a photo of her. Love this kit! Can't recommend it enough. Please run on over to the Memories2You website and get yourself one! ºÜº It has tons of paper. Love that! Also loved these American Crafts chipboard thickers stickers. Very cool. The little acrylic tags were fun too. Hope you like it too Jen!

Did you have a good day? Mine was good. This week should be a bit calmer at work. We have a couple of big events behind us now so I should be able to get to some of the regular stuff that needs to be done. However, Easter isn't far and we always have extra plans to celebrate with Sunrise Service and Palm Sunday and our regular Easter service. It's always a wonderful time.

Got a haircut after work. Why is it your hair can be fine, and then suddenly one day it is just way too long and you can't do a thing with it? I was so ready for a cut and am pleased as always with the great job my stylist did. On the visit prior to this one I had gotten my color done as well. My normal color is brunette. I have always liked red and auburn hair so on occasion I have added some of those colors when I want a change. I like it and enjoy it as does my husband. Why is it though that people seem to think it is their place to tell you that you should not have done that to your hair, or that they don't like it? I mean if it bothers them that much, then don't look at me for goodness sakes.. ºÜº I wish I could just not let it bother me. I should be able to just be happy that I like it and that is the end of it. I have to admit though, the comments hurt my feelings and make me think I should just go back to my regular color so people will leave me alone. You know what though? Not doing that. I like it and for now, I am keeping it. OK, I feel better now. Back to our regular program.

I am off to work on my next LO with this same kit. I am using some photos of my niece Lindsay in the leaves this past Thanksgiving. She is such a pretty girl. Can't wait to show you what I come up with.

Blessings!

Have you seen the new Vera Bradley purses? This is the Pink Elephant fabric. Isn't it cute? Makes me want to run out and get a new spring purse! Love the grommet detail on this one too. I don't need a new purse, I don't need a new purse, I don't need a new purse.... It's not working. ºÜº

Just received my first kit for the Memories 2 You design team!! I am so excited. It has loads of paper to work with and some fun embeliishments including some sparkly jewels, and Heidi swapp bling and even jeweled brads. Very pretty colors. 2 ideas for layouts are formulating in my head just since getting the mail ike 10 minutes ago... Guess that is a good thing! Can't wait to have some time to create and post!

Do you watch LOST? My husband and I watch it and Wow, these new episodes that just started do the LOST thing so well. What is the "LOST thing" you ask? Well that is my way of saying how they sort of answer 1 or 2 questions and then throw 10 things more at you to make you go WOW and what was that supposed to mean? Ha. Ha. I mean last night my husband and I were sure the whole thing with Juliet was a scam to get Jack to agree to help Ben. By the end of the episode we weren't so sure. And...what was up with the people who have been "taken" suddenly standing there looking at Jack? wow. Love this show.

Do you like Beth Moore Bible studies? Well this Saturday our church is hosting a Beth Moore Simulcast Satellite Broadcast. It is on the topic of her new book, Get Out of That Pit. I have not particpated in any of her Bible studies, but have only heard good things from friends who have. A dear friend gifted me with a ticket for the event so that makes attending even nicer. I was also asked to sing for the closing. That will be fun. I am wavering between 2 songs. I've been asking God about it and hope to get it pinned down today and get some rehearsing in.

The weather today is beautiful. It is warm and feels like spring. Makes me want to throw the doors and windows open. I won't though. It isn't quite warm enough for that yet.

Hope the rest of your week goes well! Blessings!

So why am I posting a layout I did months ago? And why summer shoes? Because it was WARM outside today. All of our snow melted. That first warm day each year, the one that makes you start to think about Spring.... that day always make me think of my spring and summer shoes! I love wearing my crocs and clogs and flip flops! I love getting rid of the socks and running around in my bare feet.... I cannot wait for that first day that is warm enough to wear my sandals and crop pants ...... Ok, got that out of my system. We will now return to our regularly scheduled blog post.

So what is Memories 2 You? Are you asking yourself that question? Well I am happy to answer. Memories 2 You is a new monthly scrapbook kit club that I am blessed to be a part of for their Design Team!! I am so excited. I had been working on the Design Team for a scrapbook store in a nearby town. However, the problem is that it is not "nearby" enough. It takes about an hour to get there and that just was not working out for frequent trips to turn in layouts and pick up supplies. So, when the opportunity for this Design Team presented itself I was thrilled! Our first kits are being shipped to us shortly so our first month to design for will be for the March 07 kit. There are 2 kits being offered. Here is a peek at the papers offered for this month:

These papers and some of the embellishments are from American Crafts. Mostly from their new line called Ala mode I believe.

The other kit is with papers from Dude Designs. This line is called little dudes. Aren't they cool? Love the colors and patterned papers.

Since the club is brand new, the new owners, Cathy and Michelle have been working so hard to get the website up and running. Be sure to check back often for updates as more things get posted to the site. I am so looking forward to this opportunity!

Busy week ahead. You are probably so sick of hearing me say I need to catch up on my classes. But guess what.... I need to catch up on my classes! Ha. Ha. I didn't get anywhere with them over the weekend. I am determined to make some headway this week. Both on my Heidi class and then getting not only caught up, but ahead on my Quick Books Class. We also have grocery shopping, my husband has a meeting tomorrow night, choir, heading to town for some errands, an all day conference at church on Saturday, Coffeehouse worship on Sunday, preparing to sing for the conference Saturday.... wow - there is more than I thought. We had a fabulous dedication service at church yesterday. We finally are finished and in our new building, 2 years to the day from the fire. It was a perfect, touching dedication service yesterday. A friend took some pictures. I'll try to post a few later this week when I have some ready.

Hope your week goes so well! Blessings!

Happy Valentine's Day! Did you have a good one? I did and technically it's not over yet for us. We had choir rehearsal tonight so we are having our romantic dinner/evening alone tomorrow night. These are the beautiful roses I found waiting for me today on our dinning room table. Along with a yummy box of Fannie May Mint Meltaways. Love those! Not only did my husband get those things for me, he gave me 2 of those cool new hallmark cards that play music. One with Josh Groban and one with Lionel Richie. Very cool! When I get home from work this gift was waiting for me.....

A new Precious Moments figuine. Isn't it cute? It's called Your Love Makes My Heart Blossom. I have always liked the Precious Moments figures. I love the message Sam Butcher puts into them. Several years back we visited the Precious Moments Chapel. It was so beautiful and peaceful. I could have just sat down in the middle of the main chapel and just soaked it all in for hours. I'd love to visit there again sometime.

This is the card I made for my husband. I used some Valentine's papers I had from a Jenni Bowlin kit from last year. The ribbon was from that kit too. I just added some ink, the MM Jellie word and the kraft cardstock. I saw something similar to this somewhere but I can't remember when/where. I wish I could so I could give credit.

Do you have snow where you are? We just have a little bit. Maybe an inch? We mostly got rain, ice and sleet. Not too bad. I was so surprised they closed the area schools. We used to live near Chicago and they required a blizzard before even considering closing school.

Hope the rest of your week goes well. I am home tomorrow but have lots of housework and class work to get caught up on.

Blessings!

Finally finished my travel journal!! I started this while on vacation this past December. Sometime last year Ali E. did an article in CK about scrapbooking on the road where she suggested taking minimal supplies, such as the book you want to use, pen, adhesive, stapler, etc. and actually scrapping your trip during your trip. This sounded fun to me, so for our vacation I was determined to do this. I took a small amount of supplies, picked out some stickers and pat. paper I wanted to use, got myself a 7 gypsies blank journal, and I was all set. During our trip I would try to journal what happened each day, and also pick up things to put in my book like receipts, menus, etc. I even had a few pics printed at Walgreens while on the road and added those. Then back at home I designed the cover and finished up the inside. I am so pleased with how it turned out and it was so fun!! I will definitely do this again. Probably our next trip will be the vacation we want to take to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversay. Being a special occasion like that will make the project even more special and fun!! There are like 20 pages inside. I posted a few of them in my 2 peas gallery here if you are interested.

Our first service in the new sanctuary today was WONDERFUL. So cool back to be in our own building in our new sanctuary. The first thing Pastor Mark said was Welcome Home. That was so cool. It was beautiful and exciting and perfect.

Off to watch the Apprentice and check out the weather forecast. I hear we are in for some ice! Ugh. I think I'd rather have the snow.

Have a great week.

Blessings!

This is a new print we just picked up last night for our bedroom. I LOVE this picture. So peaceful to me. I saw it in a catalog for a local Bible Bookstore. At first the picture itself really caught my eye. Then I saw the verse! It has a favorite Bible verse printed on it. "I lie down and sleep in peace for you alone O Lord make me dwell in safety." I often say that verse to myself as I am falling asleep at night. It comforts me. So to find a beautiful picture, with that verse on it... We had to get it for our new bedroom. My husband hung it for me where I can see it easily. I find it so peaceful and soothing.

My sweet husband came home from town this afternoon and handed me pink tulips! Isn't he sweet? Aren't they pretty. They make me so ready for spring! I guess it really isn't that far off. We have been blessed with a pretty easy winter. Hardly any snow, just some pretty cold temps. The temps don't bother me so much. I like being able to bundle up in comfy socks and sweaters.

Haven't got much scrapping done this week. I was only able to work on stuff on Tuesday when the QVC shows were on. I am going to spend some time this evening finishing my travel book. After that I have 2 design team layouts due. I have a few ideas, but I am not positive what direction I am going with those. Might use some family photos from Thanksgiving time. For this challenge we have to use a page kit we picked from what the store offers. We are either supposed to make one 2 page layout with it, or we can do two 1 page layouts. I am leaning towards the 2 page. I haven't done one of those for awhile.

I am getting too behind for comfort with my YTR BPS class. I need to do 2 weeks from January at this point, and now 2 weeks from Feb. Heidi says as long as we are current by the end of each month we should be fine. So, if I can catch up by the end of this month I think I will be OK. I have the Jan calendar decorating part to do, plus a christmas letter. For Feb. I am supposed to write a list of people I love and let them know, then do a collage layout with their photos. Should be very cool.

My Quick Books class is going well. I am not behind if you base it on the fact that we have 2 weeks from when each lesson is released to complete it. However, I am barely hitting those 2 week deadlines. The next one is coming up by this Wednesday. I am liking the class though. It is already helping me in my job.

Tomorrow is our first service in the new sanctuary at church. I am so excited about that! Next week will be 2 years from the date of the fire. We are having a building dedication service then on the exact 2 year anniversary. It has been amazing how God has brought us thru all this and how he has blessed us thru such a hard thing.

Tomorrow night is a Valentine's banquet at church. It has been years since I have been to a Valentine's dinner at church. The last one I remember is just a few years into our marriage and we are going on 20 years in a few months. I also remember when my husband and I were just dating that we came to visit my Mamaw and Papaw. It was around Valentine's day and their church was having a dinner at a local restaurant. It was so fun to go to that with them. I remember the lady who sat across from me saying she was going to see if their pie was as good as my Mamaw's. She took one bite, looked at me and shook her head no. It was very cute. So cool now that we live in Mamaw's house and the restaurant we had the banquet at is one of the places my husband and I go to lunch after church on Sunday's.

Well we are about to have a Digorno Garlic Bread pizza for dinner. Have you had those? Very good!! Hope you have a great weekend.

Blessings!

OK, since the dog is white, and the snow is white, maybe you can't see it too good in the picture. But I have a question.... Does he have to come in with snow all over his face every time he goes outside? I mean wouldn't you stick your face in the snow and say, "wow, that's cold" and then like not do that again? It must be a dog thing I guess. We barely have any snow on the ground, just a dusting, but man it is COLD. Even so, every time he goes out, here he comes back inside with a face full of snow looking at me like what? I didn't do anything....

Been watching the QVC scrap shows today and having a scrap/mental health day. It has done me good. I am getting a lot done on my travel journal/album from our December vacation. I will post a picture when I get done. I am really pleased with how the cover came out.

Not much snow here, but feels cold like Chicago used to. I actually like it. Cold outside is good reason to be warm and cozy inside.










Well, back to scrapping. I had just popped on to get a picture from the website of one of our favorite restaurants near where we used to live. (for my travel book, not my wallet or anything...) They have the best poor boys!!! Where we live now there doesn't seem to be any such thing as a poor boy. Looking at a picture of the ones from Illinois is almost painful.... Ha. Ha. Ha.

Well can you tell I've been to Target recently? OK, I wasn't even specifically looking for lamps. I just happened to walk down the lamp aisle while looking for a bookshelf for my office. What do I see? Lamps from the Simply Shabby Chic collection at Target. I love this lamp. You of course will notice the pink shade.... It just looks so vintage, so like something my grandma would have had, I just loved it. So, now here it sits on my bedside table. We originally brought in the bedside table just for temporary use. It was out in our spare room. It belonged to my husband's Mom. Well once we got it in the room, I am really liking it there so it might stay put. We are currently deciding whether or not to paint it along with the rest of the furniture we need to paint.



















I am really pleased with how our bedroom project is coming together. Here is a peek at how it looks so far. The cedar chest was a birthday gift from my parents for my 19th birthday. I think it will stay as is. The side tables might get painted. The bed will probably stay the color it is. Most of the bedding is new with the exception of the crocheted pillow shams. I am trying to decide if I want to continue to use them or get new ones. I would love to find a pink/muslin stripe. Not sure if that even exists anywhere. What you can't see in the photo is the windows that need to be painted along with the molding, the base boards that haven't been repainted and put back up, new curtains needing to be hung, 2 dressers that need to be painted, and the bedroom doors which need to be stipped of 80 years worth of paint and then stained. That is mainly what we need to complete to wrap things up.

Are you having a good weekend? I am currently blogging of course and watching "Facing The Giants" (we got the DVD last night - GREAT MOVIE). I plan to work on my Heidi BPS YTR class today and maybe some of my own scrapping. I also need to catch up on my quick books class. Looking forward to Tuesday. I am off and QVC is having a scrapping day. I get a day to myself to watch and enjoy and scrap. Maybe I'll make it a PJ day too. Ha. Ha.

Have a blessed weekend!

Here is another layout for the Schmitt Photo design team. This is one of my "freebies." Each month we are to do 2 layouts that are assigned, and 2 where we pick stuff from the store to create what we want. I saw these SEI Doodly Do Girl papers and immediately thought of these photos I had of my niece Lindsay. Had some fun with flowers as you can see. Most of the ones down the center were cut out of a sheet of SEI velvet paper. Love the look....was a little tired of the cutting though. The 2 pictures, one with her all sweet and lady like, one from the same day with her hair all messed up and playing baseball, just seemed to really show who she is. She likes the girly girl stuff, yet she also likes bugs and like tries to keep them for a pet. She is a sweetie.

I am home today and about to dive into my cleaning. I need to catch up on housework. It is driving me nuts. If I can accomplish that, and now that I am current on DT stuff, then I just need to get some of my quick books class caught up and also my heidi class. Hate being behind in everything. It makes me crazy.

Do you have plans for the Super Bowl? We are planning to go to a Supe Bowl Party at church. Should be fun to watch the game with friends on the giant screen and also have time to visit and fellowship together.

Hope you have a great Thursday.

Blessings!