Gus and his dad Trigger

the top picture is Trigger, Gus' dad. I posted it to see them together. The last time I saw Trigger, Gus was 5 months old and still looked very much like a puppy. He doesn't look like a puppy anymore as you can tell LOL

isn't he getting big? he's about 75lbs now at 9 months. He is a true lab, he loves his food! I'm not sure what he'll weigh when he's done since the vet says he could keep filling out till he's a year and a half OMG!! he is a good boy for the most part. It's nice that he's starting to sleep through the night (that only started in the last 2 wks) for about 3 months I was getting up at 1am and 3:30 am to let him out. I know I would not be happy to have to be doing that for much longer!!!

always fun to find a new way to use the stash

I got out my Maya Road chandelier crystals and coloured them with my Copics. It's pretty quick, but I had to wait until they dried to string them and add them to the layout. I think they add just the right amount of vintage to the layout.

more wonderful goodness from Making Memories

check this out. I had to pick up a cute little birdhouse from Micheal's for $1.50. I knew I would alter it somehow.... and this is what I came up with. I used the awesome Making Memories Noel papers and embellishments. I also used some Webster's ribbon, dew drops and some Prima flowers and embellishments. The Scrapping Nook is where I got my Making Memories Noel papers and embellishments.

so nice to scrap again

I was busy with the Noel line from Making Memories yesterday. Janice from the Scrapping Nook sent me some of the line and this is what I came up with with it. I was busy painting all morning while I was watching the miners being saved in Chile. It was very uplifting. After playing with paper strips, I realized that if I cut the 4" square, I can always mitre the corners afterwards. duh!!! anyways, live and learn right LOL

without further adieu, here it is.

I love fall

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We were lucky enough to go out for a drive and look at the beautiful fall colours before dinner. Fall is my most favourite time of the year. It has even got me scrapping again. I had done the distress stickles on this paper about a year ago but I never did make a layout out of it .... till now that is. so glad that it's finally done

baby Lauren

did I mention we have a new baby in the family? meet baby Lauren. she was born on Wednesday the 22nd and she weighed in at 8'13". she is my new niece. she is a wonderful baby and is fitting in nicely to life at home

busy back to school crop at Scraptures

what a crazy fun crop weekend I had over at Scraptures this weekend. Of course, the theme was back to school. I am usually not very good about getting things done at a crop but every once in a while, the inspiration strikes. well, that was this weekend.
got lots done and the best part is it's still going on for a few days yet. go on over and check it out.... maybe go back to school and do a challenge or 2. tell em Wustaz sent you ;)

spent a great day at the fair

we had so much fun at the fair on the weekend. we went with my brother and his family. I can't remember having that much fun in a long time. I also got to try out my new lens..... there is a slight learning curve with it, but the shots I got are definitely workable.

I highly recommend getting out to your local fair. the weather is beautiful and who knows what fun you will have

She passed!!

I am so very thrilled to let you know that Jessica passed! I couldn't be a happier Momma than today. I always wanted my daughter to have a career that she would never have to rely on anyone to get through life and this career is perfect. It was a rough journey and many times she called my bawling just wanting to quit. The part that was the hardest was she was responsible for finding all of her own clients to work on for school. not only did she have to find clients that would commit to coming 3-4 times and for 3 hours each time, these clients had to meet all the criteria that was required for school. that was the most frustrating part of the whole school experience for her. (and for me too) That is my peeve with the private school that she went to. this is far too stressful..... especially since having already paid $35000.00 to attend the programme.

this is all water under the bridge now. I am so very proud of my little girl!!!

what does this look like to you? a Sterilite container on my counter perhaps? if you thought that, you would most definitely be right. To me, that container looks like 2 years of dreams, frustration and an awful lot of hard work. That container is my daughter's bin for dental hygiene school with her scrubs in the garment bag on top. She has already passed her board exams with flying colours. Yesterday was her practical exam. We travelled to the city at 6:30 yesterday morning with my brother in tow..... Happily, my brother Kent was a suitable candidate for her practical exam. I sat anxiously in the waiting room as support. 35 minutes into it, Gary was asked to go upstairs....I thought that meant that my brother was rejected as her candidate -much to my surprise, my brother didn't come back down from the examination. It turns out that the only other girl there from her class had her client rejected and my daughter offered her Dad up as a replacement. Gary was accepted as her client and she was able to complete her practical exam too. (had no one stepped up as her replacement, she would have failed and lost her $500 exam fee -how unfair!!!)

now we wait to see how it all turned out. the next 2 weeks will have many trips to the mailbox I am sure.

so look at that container on my counter again. What do you see? I see possibilities, I see the future. I see my little girl growing up.

I am officially a redneck!

we are back from Nascar. we were at the Carfax 400 at the Michigan Internation Speedway. what a time we had! you have to tailgate at least once before you die.... I can cross that off the bucket list now!. there is something about drinking beer and barbequing in a field that's been turned into a parking lot for 100000 of your closest friends for the day. and to think we started tailgating at 9:30 am on a Sunday!

you have to forgive me, I forgot my camera at home..... I know, shocking isn't it. I had to rely on Gary for the photos. (there aren't very many of them.... I would have taken about 300 LOL) there I am in the middle photo.... the one in the orange shirt and Nascar hat and a beer in my hand (tailgaiting started at 9:30 and the drinking didn't stop til the race was over..... when in Rome!)

Michigan is beuatiful and I would go back there again in a heartbeat. we had such a good time there.

some benefits

there are some benefits to being up at 3am..... I got the dishwasher unloaded, loaded, cleaned and unloaded again. I also folded up 2 loads of laundry. the best part is I used the Aug kit from Scraptures. I am happy with the way the layout came together...... now I am exhausted and it's time to start my crazy busy day....

God is challenging me!

I have to keep you up to date on the trials and tribulations of Gus. I would never have guessed what he got himself into last night. Ryan came upstairs with Gus at bedtime and said that he had something in his teeth. (Ryan thought it was a bottle cap) Gus was obviously distressed..... turns out it was a clip it up clip. He had chewed it to a misshapen mess, but it had in fact, clipped to the side of his mouth way at the back. It would no longer open, but it was attached fastly to the side of his mouth. I think I would have been freaking out too if this was attached to my mouth. After numerous attempts at getting it off, Gus was finally free. He again, settled down to sleep and started snoring right away. I know someone up above has sent this dog into my life to test me, but more importantly, to see the humour in everyday life! and oh my, is it funny these days.

oh this dog!

Gus was chasing Peyton up the deck stairs and his back leg went through the back of the stair and his back end just fell. Poor Gary thought Gus had broken his leg. I saw just how much Gary loves his dog last night. He was so worried about him. I came down and it was obvious nothing was broken, but I was more worried about tendon and ligament damage. Initially he wouldn't weight bear on it, and when he did, he barely touched his toe to the ground and it turned in and he dragged his foot. OMG!! I had visions of ligament surgery and months of rehab. (you know it would be me doing all of that) Gary carried Gus upstairs last night and he just layed his head on a pillow and went to sleep. Well, this morning, Gus jumped on the bed and licked Gary's face. all that worry last night was melted away!! Gus is slightly sore today, but none the worse for wear. I swear this puppy is going to be the end of me!!

great news

I have exciting news to announce. I was asked to be part of the amazing talented design team and the scrapping nook

please stop over and check out all the great things that are happening there. the forums are friendly and very inspirational. stop by and say hi!!!

is summer really 1/2 over already?

ever feel that time is just slipping away? as hard as I try to hold on to it, it slides away even faster. I guess the challenge is to enjoy the moments and hold on for the ride. here's what we've been up to so far this summer. can't wait to get scrapping these!!

miss me??

I have been taking a break, getting priorities straight. you know when you burn the candle at both ends?? the centre of the candle doesn't look so pretty anymore. I was in that place. Just when things were getting balanced again, we decided to toss it all up in the air again. Meet Gus!! he is the newest member of the pack. We certainly didn't want to get a puppy at this time, but fate had a different plan for us. so many coincidences lined up and he was meant to be with us. I am here to tell you that after having a puppy for a month, I know I could never have a baby again. I like my sleep WAY TOO MUCH!!!! LOL. Gus is 6mths old and he is really a puppy. right down to the uncoordinated movements and the love of chewing.

let your dreams soar

it was great times at Scrapfest on Friday with my friends Jillian and Karen. we shopped our butts off (surprise!) and we laughed. is there anything better than that? We were lucky enough to take a fun class and we got to meet lots of new people and to catch up with lots of old friends. I was inspired to dig into my bags of new scrappy goodness and play. this is what I came up with. can I say I love Webster's Pages????

on line crop this weekend

yes you heard it right.... we have an online crop happening this coming weekend at PIT. it's to get you all primed and beat the rush for national scrapbook day and provide you with tons of inspiration to create. I have a few challenges up my sleeve that should be fun and make you think outside your scrapping box. I will be around for Fri and I hope to see you there

baby buttercup

I was at Scrapfest on Friday and I was introduced to the world of Bella stamps. Honestly, I haven't really been tempted until I saw some examples at Scrapfest -oh my, I was hooked then. I picked up a few images in this line. they are so sweet. this card is for one of my daughter's clinical instructors who is due in June with her first child (shhhhh it's a boy!) my daughter and I sat down last night and coloured a few of the images up. I am excited that I have another image coloured and ready to be made into a card.... something to do for today.

gotta love a sketch

I was given this sketch by Karen over at PIT. it was to be the Thursday sketch on her blog but she received some bad news about her grandson so I don't know if it will be posted over there today or not. I am posting the sketch that I worked from and my creation. I love to work with sketched and make them my own

wanna make a difference??

how about making a card and sending it to a sick little boy? Lennon is 3 1/2 and he has bravely fought brain cancer for a little while now. his MRI showed more cancer activity in his brain yesterday. We are asking that people think of Lennon and send him a card to brighten his day. This is his address (along with his mom of course)

Amanda and Lennon Hunt 5649 South 31st Street Apr5 Lincoln NE 68516

thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day and making this little boy's day better

April skies ribbon kit

so here I was sitting at the computer all morning..... 1 1/2 hrs later and here is my very first blog post for SnS. let me tell you I was stressed about it. I am not big on posting on others blogs..... what if they don't like it. it's all well and good for me to ramble on here and all.... but on someone else's blog it affects alot of people. after I got over myself, I got down to the posting. this is what I came up with.... remember it's a first attempt. be kind LOL

BTW aren't those ribbons cute????

who says you have to scrap Christmas photos at Christmas

well here I am grabbing at Christmas photos to scrap now, now that spring is here. I tried this little ribbon trick along the die cut border. I love how it looks. (and it's so easy) see if you can figure out how to do it

another month, another great kit

happy April everyone. I hope the beautiful weather is finding you wherever you are. Being that it's April, that means another great kit at Pages In Time. check this out. you better hurry though. I have this combination of products headed to my house, and I don't think all the other add ons are going to last long

bad blogger!!

I am a bad girl aren't I? somehow blogging seems on the bottom of the priority list. Truth be told, I have been getting educated like crazy for the past month and a half and between that and life, things have been pretty crazy around here. Ryan finished his hockey season last night.... it was a character building year....let's just leave it at that. LOL. he had fun and that's what matters. I am happy to find something that keeps him off his PS3 and is fun and exercise to boot. Jess is very close to the end of her course and is studying for her board exams that occur in May. wow, where did that few years go?

I was asked to continue on the DT for Sketches:Creatively Yours.
it's a great group of ladies over there and I am so thrilled to be working with my buddy Jillian. I am amazed what she can do with paper and ribbon and clay. (you have to check it out)

thought I would leave you with a creation from yesterday.... enjoy

March kit of the month at PIT

oh my goodness. I really don't know how Karen keeps putting such beautiful kits together.... and the add ons..... they are to die for!! let's just say new Prima..... hurry over, they are almost all sold out

sketch interpretation

time for another sketch interpretation.... this time at Pages in Time's blog. Alda continues to blow me away with her amazingly creative sketches. How can you not run to your supplies and get creating after seeing this sketch?
I decided to change up the LO I was going to create to something fun with teenage inspired colours and whimsy...... and this is what I came up with.

check out PIT's blog every Thurs. for more wickedly creative sketches.

sketch interpretation

check out this great card sketch that is posted right now at Sketches: Creatively Yours. this is my interpretation of it as a layout.... I love this grid pattern -so not my usual style but it worked out just fine.

scrapping!!!

I was lucky enough to get some scrapping done.... OK I admit it. I was procrastinating studying for neonatal resuscitation... but I really have to study tonight...... so this is what I was doing while I was procratiniating I mean trying to study.

I made this layout today. I made all the flowers this morning. the paper ones I made the way Tim Holtz did his during the 12 days of tags. the burgandy ones are made out of ribbon (the same ribbon that the bow is made out of)

off to really study.

just one more sleep....

just one more sleep til the Pages in Time crop. I happen to know there will be lots of challenges to get the creativity flowing..... oh yeah, did I mention that there will be prizes?? go get your trimmer warmed up and I'll see you there tomorrow evening!!

three cups of tea and stones to schools

I went to a presentation with Greg Mortenson last night. He wrote Three Cups of Tea and Stones into Schools. He is an incredible man. Mark my words, he will receive the Noble Peace Prize. It was an incredible night and I definitely look at the world differently

hey guess what???

we have a new DT member over at Pages in Time. Her name is Alda Stevens and she is uber talented when it comes to putting a sketch or two together. I envy her!! She did a card sketch for PIT's blog today and this is what I came up with.... imagine it's the same sketch that I used for both cards. stop by the PIT blog and see what you can do with the sketch, I would love to see it!

ever been here?

check this blog out.... it is dripping with inspiration

Valentine's crop

Get in on the fun at our Valentine On Line Crop!!!!

Join us for a weekend of on-line fun! Join us for fun challenges,games,chat and a new tutorial! Small RAK's given for lucky participants!


This is not a point based crop where you have to collect points for RAK's. All Rak's given away by random draw for whatever challenge its being offered for. You must complete the challenge to be eligible




So mark your calendars and come join us for a weekend of fun!!



Time:Feb 6,2010 at 8am to Feb 7,2010 to 12am.


Location: Pages in time Main forum

great blog alert

I found a great blog today and I wanted to share it with you.... check it out. she also has some nice blog candy right now. see you there!!

out with a bang

2009 sure went out with a bang for us.... we were at my MIL's house for New year's. Gary and the boys (Ryan, Tim and Herman)were outside and Herman had asked Ryan to jump on the skidoo and get something for him from the barn. We didn't know all of this was going on as all the girls were in the house. All we heard was the skidoo revving and then a bang. I thought someone had hit the house.... sure enough I was right. it seems Ryan got on the skidoo and hit some hard ice and snow and that pulled the skis in a different direction than he wanted to go. -he hit a shrub first and paniced and hit the throttle instead of the brake and ran straight into the deck. The only thing that was hurt on Ryan was his pride. It could have turned out so much worse. See how the ground dips under the deck? If he was going faster, the skidoo whould have gone farther under the deck and he would have been hurt if not killed. I am very thankful for that. needless to say, Ryan's nickname is Crash now.