Just had to share

My little baby- Mia- is barely 10 months old. She's been letting go of things and standing on her own for about a month now. Last Sunday, she let go and started walking on her own! She's such an independant little booger. It's hilarious though- she's walking more than she's not now- and it's the cutest thing ever. She looks sooooo tiny and way to little to walk- but she is having so much more fun. She wants so badly to chase and walk with the other kids- so I guess it's a good thing. BUt here some pics to prove my story.

Plus- we went and took some pics tonight and I had a friend snap some shots of me. I got some good ones- and these are the best by far! Thanks Elizabeth! I'll have to do a page with these.......of course!

Happy Thankgiving!

Ok- I know I'm a slacker! BUt here I am, still alive and still here with things to share. First things first.... I've had my weekly update on Georgana's blog on the lines coming out in Jan. you can check them out here for some hints and sneek peeks on what they will sort of look like! http://www.georganahall.typepad.com

Did you have a wonderful Thanksgiving? I did! We had a few families over for dinner and had SOOOOOOOO much food. My kitchen is big enough- but all counter space was crammed to the max with food. It was great. And not to toot my own horn too much- but I do make the best Turkey in the whole wide world, and once again, this year was no different! Seriously.... thinking of opening my own turkey cooking business. :)

But now that it's over- it's my favorite time of year. CHRISTMAS!!!! I always pull out all my decorations and decorate my house the day after THanksgiving and yesterday was no different. I pulled it all out and it's all up and ready to share. One surprise that was added to my collection this year is my "Shaky Booty Santa". That's what I call it. My husband went and bought it for me at Walmart. It plays a song and turns around and literally shakes it's booty. It's absolutely hilarious and you can't possibly have a bad day with that going on! Here are some pics of my Christmas decor. AND- I was able to finally sit down and do something for myself. I switched my living room and dining room around and decided that my walls needed a makeover too. SO I went and found all these frames in my closet and made a collage on my wall in my dining room. I love how it turned out. what do you think? THe picture makes it look sort of small- but it really takes up about half my wall.

Such a wonderful time of year- can't wait to share all my stories and pics of the season. Going out to take more family pics today. hopefully I get some good ones- seems to be almost impossible with 3 children under the age of 4!!!!

Happy Holidays!

What's in a Name Tag

I've been tagged again... thanks to my friend Lisa (blog at right), so I have to give the explanation to why we chose the names of our children. So here's more random facts about me!
Hailey- I used to fantasize in high school about what I'd name my children when I had them. Hailey was the first name I ever came up with for a girl. So when I got married and had a girl, we tossed some names around, but luckily for me, my husband loved the name just as much as I did. So tha'ts how my oldest got her name. Not named after anyone, just liked the name a lot!
Kayleb- Well, boy names are a HUGE struggle for us. We fought over boy names the entire pregnancy. Honestly, I hated the name Kayleb. I worked in a daycare and there was this aweful child with that name! Every name I liked, RIck didn't and vice versa- so we had a hard time with it. Rick loved this name- but for some reason-(i'm really wierd on this) when it's spelled Caleb, I still hate it. But I saw it spelled Kayleb, and loved it. So once I changed the spelling, that's what we went with.
Amelia- Well, yet again, this name was the second name I came up with in high school for girls. I had a friend with this name when I was little and have always loved it. So when it came time to have another girl, we had it narrowed down to 2 names and when she came, we honestly couldn't decide. I think the deciding factor for me was when I Hailey to say Amelia, she said "amia". I'm always thinking of what nickname possibilities will happen. And "mia" came out of that and I LOVED it. So for me- that was it. to this day- she is "Baby Mia". we very rarely call her Amelia- but I still love the name.

Thats about it. Like I said- random facts...... :)-

More Info

So I continue to be a guest blogger on Georgana's blog every Tuesday. Go check it out here to see my latest entry: http://www.georganahall.typepad.com.
I still have yet to scrap anything for myself. I'm getting frustrated at the fact that I am not having time to do what I love. But I'll get over this bad spell and hopefully be starting up my own things soon.

I do have a class this coming up Saturday. It is my 2nd class in the series of Elsie Challenge workshops. We will focus on challenge #'s 4-6. If you are interested in a kit-(signups for the class are now closed)- call Savannah Scrapbooking to get one. I will be coming up with the next kit for challenges #7-9 next week. You can see the kit here: http://savannahscrapbooking.typepad.com/savannah_scrapbooking/2006/week43/index.html

I HAVE to mention the finale of LOST last night! wasn't it amazing?!?!?! That show is like a drug for me..... have to watch it or I have a bad day! The writers mever cease to amaze me with new ideas and how they all connect. Can't wait until Feb when it starts up again. Any LOST fans? We'll get along great!

Halloweeny.....

Ok- got my pics of the halloween celebrations. How adorable are these? just too funny. My little one wasn't feeling well- and this picture of her is the only one that she smiled in. oh well!

And the other two of my baby, well- i guess she has a monkey gene in her somewhere! And don't ask me what caused my husband to try this out... i only took the pics! But the funniest thing is that she takes after me..... you see- my dad, used to do the EXACT same thing when I was little. I have a picture to prove it too.... where is that picture anyway?........

Inspiration Anyone?

OK- so a couple of things have happened.

One- my second Elsie challenge class has been posted and you can sign up at Savannah Scrapbooking. You can see a pic of the page we will be doing here http://www.savannahscrapbooking.typepad.com.

Two- I will be updating my progress on my process and production on the new lines coming out in Jan. on Adornit's blog, http://www.georganahall.typepad.com , every Tuesday. So check on there to see some new pics. I will also be putting little extras on here if you want to check it out here too! :)

Three- So I have been completely busy with album jobs! Swamped really. I am greatful that I have had so much work, but I have reached a point that I never wanted to be at. I am not happy doing this. I literally almost never have time to do my own work, which I would like to be my priority. So after I am done with these projects, I will no longer be taking album jobs anymore. It is sad, I have made some good friend by doing this. I just really want to focus on expanding my talents and creativity on my own pages and *hopefully* get caught up! ( I don't think that will happen, but it's worth a shot right?) I will be focusing more on publications and designing. I have made a goal for myself for how many publications I want in the next year, so we'll see how far I can go!

With that being said- I did sit down the other week and came up with this page. I LOVE these pics! isn't he adorable? Yah- this was the last time I did a page for myself and that was about 3 weeks ago. very sad for me! :( But here ya go- enjoy!

Elsie Classes

So I've started up a series of classes based on the challenge book by Elsie Flannigan. There are a total of 52 challenges- so we are doing 2-3 challenges per class. I've also thrown in a few of my own, so there will be alot to learn from them! The first class was held last weekend and was a huge hit! The next one will be on Nov. 11th at 6:30 pm. If you want a spot or a kit, call Savannah Scrapbooking and reserve your spot. This double spread was the first class. We focused on the challenges of 1) FOcusing on one photo 2) working with words/ creating journaling on strips and 3) create a ribbon border. I created this page using the new Curvy Cutter. It's not my fav. thing in the world... but I LOVE the sizes of circles it can produce. Now, here are a few pointers/ideas for you to use to create/scraplift or whatever you want!

*When using one photo- you typically want to enlarge it if you are doing 12 x 12 pages. If you dont, you have A LOT of room to fill up. I have seen some pages with 4x6 pics and they turn out good, but i love a good pic that is a larger size.

* To use ribbon, here are a few ideas.

tie them in knots

tie a ribbon around a picture or piece of paper

sew a line down the middle of the ribbon to create a unique look

use ribbon to create a border around a picture

tie a knot to create a "leaf" on a flower

staple small pieces in a "v" on the edge of a pic

scrunch up a strand and sew down the middle

use a straight ribbon for a "stem" of a flower

cut little slits in the bottom of a piece to create a "fringe"

* When creating Journaling using strips, make a list of adjectives of you or the person you are scrapping about, and use those on the strips.

Use a poem on strips

use word stickers as your journaling

Ok- so there ya have it! a few ideas in a nutshell on the first class. You can look on Jamie's blog www.savannahscrapbooking.typepad.com to see a pic of the next class and a description of what it will entail.

We will be focusing on challenges 4-6. *Create your own chipboard embellishment *Create a ribbon cluster *Embellish a floral accent. I'm throwing my own challenge in there as well and that is to create a page with no 4x 6 photos. We will be doing a page with 1 5x7 and 3 3x3's. so be prepared. Also, if you missed the AWESOME workshops that were given by Angelia Wiggington while she was here, we will be using some of the techniques she taught in her "Bloom" class, so be sure to come if you want to learn some! It's going to be an awesome class - hope you sign up!

WOWOWOWOWZERS!!!!

Ok... So I had a phone conference yesterday with Carolee and Georgana of Adornit. We talked over what I will be designing for CHA in Jan. and all the details. I was so excited and happy to talk with them. It was an amazing experience!
So... deatils........ wanna know them?!
I will be doing 3 lines! One will be a 12 x 12 album kit, complete with papers, stickers, and possibly embellishments. I will also be doing 2 "open shelf" lines with matching stickers. I will also be coming up with my own alphabet stickers, and possibly a ribbon set and other embellishments. There may be more involved.... but I need to see what I can come up with in the amount of time I'm given. I am sooooo completely floored by how much I will get to design. I have all the papers done. So now it's on to the hard stuff. Ready for some sneaky peaks?!.....
SORRY!!!! can't give them out quite yet. You'll have to wait like everyone else to see them. They will be wonderful though. I am excited to use them to create projects of my own.
This is still mind blowing! I will be updating often on the progress of the whole process. Updates will also be available on Georgana's blog, www.georganahall.typepad.com up until CHA at the end of Jan. So keep checking there to see what becomes available and to see what's going on.
Let me know if you have any suggestions or ideas on what you'd like to see on the market!
For now..... I'm out of here!

Something New/Something Blue

OK- So I've been on this Design Team kick recently with applying for them. Typically I don't because I don't feel most of them give enough product for the amount of work you have to do. The ones I've tried for are worth it.... so hence the reason I've been trying. I tried for one that i REALLY wanted, but alas.... didn't get it. :( This isdustry is full of ups and downs. But in my day of sulking, I get this amazing phone call saying I made the finalists for another! So, the only difference is that the one I got is for a Review Team. http://www.scrapfriends.com I will be sent numerous products every month to "review". I will then create a page or a project with those products and write a review on them for others to see. I will be on the team for November and December, then the 5 winners will be announced the end of December to sign a year's contract. I am excited for the opportunity- we'll just see how it goes. I keep thinking how much I want to get a lot of things on my resume, but can't determine how much is too much. I am busy doing albums for other people still and the only open time I have to scrap is during the kids' nap time and after they go to bed. Anyway- things are good, things continue to work out as they always do.
I also will be starting on my BEST project of designing my new line in the next month! Stay tuned!!!!!!

DOING THE VICTORY DANCE!!!!

Can you tell I'm doing the jig?!?!?!
So.... this will be made public on Tuesday- but remember that contest I was in with Carolees Creations/Adornit?
Now... for that "announcement" I was going to tell you about.......
Drumroll please...............

I WON!!!!!!!!!!!!

Due to the votes and the purchasing of my product- I have been named the Scrapbook Apprentice! I found out eariler in the week.
Now... the prize.....
I get to create another line. I don't know all the details to how big or small it will be. But another line will be coming out in Jan. I will also be flying to CHA in Jan.... -which is in Anaheim, CA- to debut it!
I am just so excited for this WONDERFUL opportunity. I hope to make "connections" and "promote" myself as a real designer. This is just flat out amazing and such a blessing.
Thanks to everyone that voted for me (I'm doing the Beauty Pageant wave) (crying sobs of tears too- :) hehehe )..... It's been a fun ride- now to create even more! Stay tuned for my next line!!!!!!

Tagged

Ok... so my friend Lisa (her blog is on the left)- "tagged" me and now I have to respond. I guess the whole gist of it is that once you are "tagged" you have to state 5 wierd things about yourself that no one knows. SO I'll do my best to make you oooo and aaawww over everything i say!

Wierd thing #1) I like dipping my toast in Hot chocolate. Yup.... soggy bread- heard right. BUT- it is all thanks to my dad and childhood. You should try it sometime... either plain toast or with cinnamon and sugar- it's YUMMY!
Wierd Thing #2) I can't stand grocery cart handles and gas station handles. EEWWWW..... totally grosses me out to even have to think of touching them. If I HAVE to touch them- then I lather up with hand sanitizer at least 4 or 5 times the second i get in the car. Wierd phobia thing.
Wierd Thing #3) Ok- this is freakin hilarious and I can't believe I'm admitting to it.... know what a dutch oven is?! hehehe- One of my fav things to do of all time is to get in bed before my husband and let a little bodily function loose... then the second he gets in bed, whip up the blankets and give him a nice whif!
Wierd Thing #4) I'm still a little girl at heart. Explanation..... ever have one of those BFF necklaces or rings? I TOTALLY still want those! I have these friends that given the chance... I'd buy them in a heartbeat to wear. Yah..... wierd.
Wierd Thing #5) OOOhhh.. just came up with a good one! K- so I get this from my mom.... and I'm totally blaming her on this one. Ever get a sunburn and it doesn't turn into a tan and the skin peels instead? Well... if you ever need that skin peeled off- I'm your girl. Yup- I like to peel the skin off your back when you've just been sunburned. Ok- sounds gross... but it really is fun!

Ok- I could come up with more... but I don't think you want me to! Just a little tidbit of info you may or maynot have heard before, and may not want to know ever again!
Still have some good news.... can't share it for another couple days.......sorry! :)-

oh- I'm supposed to tag 5 others now too... um....... ok- Jamie, Amanda, Angelia, Lou, Jen G.
Have fun!!!!

YIPPEE!!!

Ok- so I have a bit of good news.... but can't share it quite yet. :)
BUT... have another bit of good news. The company Notions Marketing has picked up all the 3D stickers from all 6 contestants in the Apprentice contest I was in. So Notions is now marketing my product! That is very huge in this industry... means that it's selling really well. My boss called me and told me she has found it- so that's very exciting! Working on some more projects and getting ready for more work! I'll fill you in a little later on my good news! ;)-

Inspiration Page 1

Ok- So I said I'd post these pages. This is only one that I did. Haven't scanned in the other yet- but I'll try to get to it tomorrow. This is my niece Macie. I have some hidden journalin behind the flowers on the left side. The journaling is about how Macie and the problems she went through when she was first born. She was in the hospital for only a week- but she's a healthy little bugger now that eats everything! I absolutely LOVE this page. It is one of my fav's right now. This has a lot to do with having some wonderful inspiration from Angelia Wigginton.

Amazing!

Ok- So this past weekend we had Angelia Wigginton (her blog is on my list) come to my local store here and teach some workshops. They were so much fun. I got to help her walk around and show the samples she did to the class. So- here are some pics from the classes- there's one of all the staff at Savannah Scrapbooking with Angelia, I locked Jamie in the bathroom and she's trying to get out, some friends, and the class as a whole.

Then we had an all night crop. It was the first time I've ever ahd the chance to stay up all night and scrap and the first time I've ever had 12 hours of uninterupted scrapping! I completed some amazing LO's that I have posted below. Here are some other pics of how much fun we had. Now one little explanation- me and 2 of my friends decided to make shirts that say "Scrap till you Crap". they ended up turning out really cute- so there's a picture there too. If you want one- email me and we'll go from there. And the reason I was able to stay up all night and behave the way i did..... well- one of the pictures explains it all..hehe :)

OK- so I still have the pages I did to post. I'll be on later to post those. Screaming kids and lunch are the priority now.... :)

Long time

So- it's been a while since I last posted. I know... SLACKER! anyway- couple things.....
I met this new friend- Catherine- she's amazing. We've been having so much fun together and I've baptized her into the scrapbooking religion. I know.... I'm amazing.. what can I say?! So I now have another scrap buddy to play with and it's been a lot of fun.
Mia has her surgery tomorrow on her lip. I remember mentioning it earlier- but I didn't explain it. SHe has this bump/cist that has grown on the inside of her lip since she was 2 weeks old. Sometimes they go away- in her case... it's just getting bigger. So they have to go and snip it off. The surgery is only an hour long and we can be in and out within a couple hours (knock on wood)- so it should be fairly simple and painless. She wo'nt bein a lot of pain- just a few stitches and a one day of possible grouchiness- but that's about all.
As promised eariler- I "found" the other pages I did in that contest and here they are. I've been busy and haven't had the chance to scrap lately.. but that will all change this weekend. We have Angelia Wiggington coming to teach workshops at my Local scrap store here and I get to be her assistant! I"m so excited! Then we get to stay for an all night crop... yah. Last time I stayed up all night- either Freshman year in college or my high school senior all night party. We'll see how this turns out to be. I'll be depending on a lot of friends to keep me going! ayway- I"ll post on that once it's all over.
ok- on my merry way to clean and hopefully scrap some!

SOOOO COOL!

Ok- so I won the contest at Creating Pages website. And along with the prize- I get to be the guest design team member for the month of Sept. So- click here to see my gallery with their product! http://www.creating-pages.biz/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=660
I know I said I'd put up the rest of my pages from the other contest... honestly- I need to find them! I saved them somewhere but I can't remember where - or under what name- so I need to go a lookin to find them!
Things continue to be good. Ernesto missed us.. barely. We had a good rain storm- but they canceled all the schools yesterday. Hailey's school was one of the only ones open. We were lucky though.
I get to go on a date tonight! It is an amazing thing when my husband and I actually get to go out! Doesn't happen very often- so we will soak it all up without kids in tow! Going to go do things we can't do with little kids- like bowling or miniature golf, sitting down at a nice restaraunt.... you know- those sorts of things!
And just to let you all know.... countdown to LOST begins now..... only 34 more days left!!!!
ok- I"ll go look for those pages now!

It's over-

So- I was in a couple of contests. The first one ended last week and I WON!!!!! I got a 50$ gift certificate to their online store and i get to be their guest designer for the month of September. You can check out my stuff on their site in a couple of days- www.creatingpages.biz.
The other contest was a tough one. It started out with over 50 people, and got narrowed down each week. I made it to the top 15- but it ended for me today. I'm sad- the grand prize is a product package valued at $500! So that was a little dissapointing. BUT- I cam up with some wonderful pages that I can now reveal to all! Here are some of them- I'll post more later.
I am also guest blogging on Adorit's blog TODAY! Go check out the projects and pages I've created using my line there. http://georganahall.typepad.com/listen_in/. I've had so much fun with it. I can honestly say that now that I've created so many things with my product- I'm officially sick of looking at it! Probably won't be pulling it out again for a while.
Things continue to be good- I'm very excited because Angela Wiggington is coming to Savannah Scrapbooking at the end of the month to do some workshops! She's a big-wig in the industry and it will be a lot of fun to get to know her a little.
I now get a little break from deadlines- which is very nice. I am going to be starting up a couple more contests and continuing to get published.... seems to be the only way I can work now is if I have something to work towards.
Enjoy the pics!

New Stuff/Sad Stuff

Ok- so a couple of things. First of all- I'll be guest blogging at Carolees Creations/Adornit http://georganahall.typepad.com/listen_in/ on August 28th. So I'll have abunch of pages and projects made with my product. It's all about promotion and helping to get the word out... so tell all your friends!
Second-
My daughter just went to preschool for the first time today. It is so empty in my house! Now- I have 3 kids- Hailey is 4 and Kayleb is 3... and they fight hard and love hard. So- needless to say- it is very calm and quiet in my house today- which i love. It's been a nice break. But she's gone from 8-3 every day and I am sad that my girl is not with me anymore I'm constantly thinking about her and if she's ok. I'm sure i'll get over it! Aw- so sad! Anywho... here's her funny pics of her first day of school. she's such a nut. Had to get a new outfit and shoes and a backpack. She thought she was so cool! Ok- I'll get over my sad sad story.......

Much Needed

Ok- Today I went to church and for some reason, I just needed it much more than I usually do. It was a very nice day with inspriational lessons that really boosted my up for the next week. I'm feeling good now!
So.. after several days of not being able to scrap (which literally killed me!) I was able to finally get a page done last night. This is my little niece Macie. My sister came down for a visit not too long ago and I took these pics while she was here. I couldn't wait to scrap them and now i have! Macie and my daughter Mia are 4 months apart, so it should be pretty fun to watch them grow together.
Things will be hectic the next couple of weeks- RIck has is finals, Mia has her apt's with the eye Dr. and the oral surgeon....(finally) so we'll just see if i can accomplish anything! Guess you'll find out eh?!

Finally- a breath!

So...... think I've been scrapping right? NOT! I had soo many plans and so many projects to work on this week and decided to "scrap" them (figuratively speaking). So- now that I've had so much time on my hands (major understatment)- I've been able to go on a date with my husband and celan the house majorly. I must admit- feels really good! After much debate and frustration- I'm not oging to do the Design Team for KI or Scenic Route. I really just don't have the time to get the submissions together. I've been spending a lot fo time with my kids- which has been great, and focusing more on the important things of life. So- I did manage to create our family photo frame (s). now that Mia is 7 mo. old- i figure it should be time to incorporate her photo amongst our family pics hanging up in the house. Up until now- she's been a non-existant child that only existed in the flesh. Now there's proofon the walls that she's an actual part of the family! Poor thing! ok- these aren't the best of pictures- believe me..... I know! but just the general idea of what it looks like!