Monday, Nov. 30th

Wow, it was a great weekend, but I'm glad to be back at work (I know I'm crazy). We drove to Callie's for Thanksgiving. She has a beautiful home and she is a gracious hostess. We even took the dogs, and let me tell you, Tucker riding on my chest for two hours was a little tiring. The dogs did great, but they were exhausted when we got home, they normally sleep all day and there was just way too much going on for them to miss.

Today I'm going to tell you about 3 great kits that have just been released. The first is called Indy by Digi Designs by Nicole. I have to admit when I first saw this kit, I loved the colors and elements, but thought I don't have any pictures that would fit it. But then the ideas started popping into my head. I made two pages very quickly and have a couple more in mind that I'll be doing later. I really love the book elements, which is what inspired my first layout. I saw them and was trying to think how to use them, I knew I had some pictures of Callie reading, so I thought I would use them, but wanted a cute title or quote. When searching book quotes I found one by Groucho Marx "Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend, inside of a dog, it is too dark to read." I laughed and just knew I had to use it. So I used a picture of my four legged best friend, Tucker.

Then, I found pictures of Cole when we got him a metal detector for his birthday. He was on a hunt, but I'm not sure he ever found anything of value, but if he had a good time that was all that mattered to us and him.

Nicole has a quick page freebie on her blog, so head over there to pick it up soon.

The next kit I'm going to show you is called Victorian Elegance by Scrapping Rainbow Designs. She was one of the designers I was partnered with this month at Stuff to Scrap. I love this kit, it is full of vintage elements that make me want to pull out all the old photo albums and scan photos just so I can use them. Luckily I had some already scanned to use. The first one is a baby picture of Sharla. A "colorized" version of this photo hung for years at my parents house, and it is still on of my favorite pictures of her, she still has that same smile today, just now she has teeth.

The next one is my grandmother. I'm not exactly sure when this photo was taken of her, but I think she looks beautiful in it. And I snuck a photo of my grandfather into the locket. They weren't taken at the same time, but it works.

You can pick up the kit at Stuff to Scrap.

The last, but not least kit is from ModernJune Creations and is called Rock Out Witcha Potty Out - Girls. I love the kit, but just don't have lots of potty training photos. But I did find a "nekkid" baby picture of me and created a cute layout with it. The colors in the kit are wonderful, and Kathy does such a great job, I just had to use the kit for something.

That is it for today. I still have lots of layouts to show ya'll, but I had something every day I was off, so I didn't get much blogging done. Maybe by this weekend I can work in some time. Plus I found some great deals on kits during black Friday, so I have lots of new stuff to play with....off to play some more....later.

Friday, Nov. 27

Black Friday.....yep I'm one of those crazy people that fight the crowds and shop on Black Friday. I love it when the shopping is done, and I don't have to worry about it during December. I don't have layouts to show you in the post, I'm here to tell you about 2, yes 2 great Black Friday sales.

The first is at Stuff to Scrap. I don't know the exact percent off, but I've been told it is better than normal sales (which are pretty good in themselves). The ad below is linked so you can just click on it and head over to and check it out.

The second great sale is going on at Digi Scrapbook Mania. Now they are having specials all day long, lots of different things at different times of the day. Personally you can't go wrong getting anything from ModernJune Creations (ok I'm partial, but I do love her stuff), and the other designers there are great too (especially MandyMade). There will be items 75% off and 50 cent alphas at different points in the day. If you click on the ad below it will take you to the store.

I plan on doing some shopping myself as soon as I get back from the stores!!!!!

Tuesday, Nov. 24th

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble, not that is not what I'm going to do on Thursday...ok I maybe going to do a little of that, but the Gobble I'm talking about is Digi Designs by Nicole's new kit. It is a wonderful Thanksgiving kit, but has potential for lots more, with it's rich fall colors and fun elements. You can see below all the good stuff in the kit.

Since I did one of the quick pages for Nicole, I only did one layout. The photos are Mom and Dad and then our table taken at the first Thanksgiving in this house. I have to say I really miss my Daddy, especially during the holidays.

If you go over to Nicole's Blog she has a Gobble freebie and she has a coupon code (Turkey)to get the kit and quick pages for $5.00, good through Sunday.

Monday, Nov. 23

Happy Monday everyone. Today I'm going to show you layouts with two different kits. The first kit is called Touchdown by Digi Designs by Nicole. Now if you have any football photos at all this kit is perfect. She included a great mix of colors, with fun elements like jerseys, helmets, footballs and even a customizable scoreboard. The layout I did included shots taken at a Guyer High School game. Sharla and I went to see Cole do color guard, and we took some pictures while we waited for him to square away everything.

The kit has lots of papers in bright colors and could be used for more than football, but you'll find it perfect for those football photos.

The next kit is called Rock Out Witcha Potty Out by ModernJune Creations. When Kathy said she was doing potty training kits, I thought well here is a kit I'll skip, I don't have potty training pictures. But I saw the kit and just loved the colors. So I thought, let me see if I can find a way to use it, and I did. First before you see the layout, you need some background info. When Trey was younger, I bought him boxer shorts for Christmas one year, and he had such a great time modeling them, that it became a tradition for me to find funny or weird boxers for the boys. One year I found Rugrat boxers that said "If you want to go to college, you have to be potty trained". Well they were a hit, and we picked up that phrase and used it a lot. So I did this layout in honor of and used that phrase.

More to come I promise.....

Sunday, Nov. 22nd

Ok, consider today a Cole day. I've gotten to work with Scrappy Cocoa's new kit called Work Zone. A total boys kit. I sometimes struggle with boy layouts, not to make them too fussy or girlie. But this kit is perfect. Lots of boy stuff, but a few touches that can lend itself to other types of layouts.

The first layout is Cole and Daddy, years and years ago when Cole had one of those kiddie cars. I think daddy pulled/pushed him around a lot. It also includes a picture we took this summer of Cole driving the van.....eek he is really driving.

Next is photos from a car show and I went to last year. Not really my dream car, but then I don't really have a dream car. But it was sure pretty and if anyone wants to give me one, I'll take it.

Lastly another Cole layout. These are mix of photos Sharla dug out and scanned. He was and is such a cute kid. I love the thumbs up picture, it is just so him.

I'll be later in the week with more.

Friday, Nov. 20th

Today is the release of the movie "New Moon", does that mean anything to you...well not so much for me. I'm am not a fan of vampires in any form, so I've never gotten into the series. But Kathy of ModernJune Creations has a new kit out today called Irrevocable Love and it is a Twilight theme. All I knew about the series was it was vampires, and the young heroes, seem to take their shirts off a lot. So went through my photos...no shirtless young men, hmmmm what am I to do. Of course my backup photo source is Callie, so I called her and asked if she had any shirtless young men photos. She said no, but that she had a young man in her kitchen and she proceeded to tell him to take his shirt off and pose for her. Luckily for me her friend, JQ was willing to help. I think he thinks we're crazy...and he is right. IMPORTANT NOTE: Any family and/or friends reading this blog, do not assume these layouts mean anything about a relationship between Callie and JQ, they are done for the strict purpose of showing off the kit!!!! The kit has some great word art, and I tried to show it off in these layouts.



I didn't put a lot of explanation about the layouts since they are just for fun...and I think I owe JQ a coke for being such a good sport. Thanks so much!!!!

Thursday, Nov.19th

Ok today I have two new kits to show you from Scrappin' Daisies Design. I really like both of them, but they are very different from each other. The first is Pocketful of Posies and to go along with it there is Pocketful of Posies Add-on. The colors pop in these kits, they are bright and happy. A little ray of sunshine as fall sets in and the weather turns colder.

My first layout is Mecca and her sister Pam. The photo is from a group we took outside of Tom and Mecca's old house in 2007. They wanted some family shots there before they sold the house. I really liked the sepia photo against the bright colors.

Next I wanted to show the more subtle side of the kit, Bethany did a great job of giving something for everything. The photos are of Callie taken Christmas morning last year. No make-up, in her pj's and she is still one pretty girl. I think it is the smile.

The second kit is called Up To No Good and is great too. It has richer colors, but the papers have a fun side to them as well. I love the kit's name and for some reason I just immediately thought of Cole and Callie. The first layout is Cole and he created his "hat" out of collars for the dogs to keep them from licking. He gladly let me take his picture, even posing for me. Someday he will regret that....hehehe.

The next layout is Callie, she is posing for Sharla, and I love this set of photos, she is having fun posing and you can see it in her face.

All three kits are 35% off until Saturday, so head on over to Brownie Scraps and get them soon.

Tuesday, Nov. 17th

Today is my nephew Trey's birthday, he is 6...ohhh ok, so he is 28, but I want him to be little again. So Happy Birthday Trey!!!!. Today I'm going to tell you about Nicole's new release called Autumn Love. This kit is so cool, the colors are non traditional fall colors with the soft textures and fun embellishments make this not only perfect for fall, but for any occasion.

Here is a layout I did using the kit, the photos are some great fall photos Sharla and I took over the last week or so. I love fall, and the colors were great this year, lots of yellows and golds.

And Nicole is offering little something extra this week, if you buy the kit you can get the set of Quick Pages free (coupon code FREEBIE1) or you can get the Word Art or Glitter Styles for free (coupon code FREEBIE2), so head over this week and pick up this great kit.

I promise to be back later this week with lots more stuff. I have a huge backlog of layouts to post, and I promise I'll get to them soon.

Thursday, Nov. 12th

Hi all, today I'm going to introduce you to a kit by SAHM Scrapper called Homestead Harvest. It is a great kit with soft fall colors that are so easy to use. I have made three layouts with it so far and can see me using long into the future. As you can see from the preview below, it is packed with great elements, some fun word arts and masks as well.

My first layout is of Callie, Sharla, Mecca and I. The photo was taken the night of Daddy's viewing, and somehow the four of us ended up together and it wasn't long until we were laughing and drawing a crowd. Even in the worst of times, my family can laugh, and that has helped us a lot.

Next is Callie and Chris Ratley, the youth minister at our church. He had come to her graduation and stopped by to congratulate her (and her parents), and Callie wanted a photo with him. It is hard to believe she is all grown-up.

The last layout is one I did today for the challenge a day going on at Stuff to Scrap. The challenge was to do a white space layout. I had been playing with the paper in the kit that is covered in words and this layout just came to me. I really like the results. If I had thought about it I would have taken a picture after dinner was over, because the table didn't look nearly as neat or nearly as full...hehehe.

I'll be back soon to post more of the challenges I've done so far this month. It has been a lot of fun, and if you've not been over to Stuff to Scrap Forum, you should visit soon.

Monday, Nov. 9th

Wow what a busy weekend. Sharla and I met Tina and Angela at Starbucks Saturday morning for frappuccinos and conversation. We were supposed to leave at 11:00 but didn't get away until a little after 12:00, but it was fun to sit and chat with Tina, I do miss not seeing her at work everyday. Then it was off to start the challenges at Stuff to Scraps Digi Scrap Day celebration. I was going from one to another to another, with very little time in between. But hey, I won the Store Scavenger Hunt, I did the hybrid challenge, 2 speed scraps, the all about me challenge, the template challenge, and played bingo. It was a lot of fun and the girls worked very hard to make it fun, and I can't thank them enough.

Today is the release of Nicole's new kit called Sweet Romance which is a freebie collab with Maurine Settler. The colors are a soft pink, lavender, green and brown, and really very pretty. Perfect for scrapping girl pictures, but with enough brown and green that it could be used for boys as well. If you go to Digi Designs by Nicole you can download her portion and get the link to Maurine's part.

My first layout is of Sharla and Callie, dancing, well we'll call it dancing. They were definitely having a good time. Of course it's not every day you dance in a parking lot, but with those two girls, it could be. I also used one of Nicole's templates from her Template Temptation Vol. 4.

My next layout is Callie and her new love. Yep, it is official she is in love. Her new love is Honey (no it is not that kind of love), Honey is a German Shepard. Callie got her when she bought her house. As you can see in the photo, Callie is very happy. I think if she hadn't found Honey there might have been a family feud, because I think she would have stolen Jake from her mom. Luckily this way there will be no family fighting.

So head over to Nicole's Blog for a great freebie kit, but you have to get it this week. I'll post more of my layouts from this weekend later.

Friday, Nov. 6th

Well I can say I'm glad it is Friday. Yesterday was a rough day, busy at work, but also as the day worn on, I began to have lots of lower back pain. So much so that I ended up going to Care Now, and I was pretty sure what it was and I was right, an UTI. Got some antibiotics, and went to bed. Feeling much better this morning, still not 100%, but much better.

So I have lots of layouts to post, but unfortunately I forget to copy most of them to my USB drive. I hope to post tomorrow all the stuff from last weekend. But I do have a few layouts from the challenges at Stuff to Scrap this month. They are doing a challenge a day in honor of Digi Scrap Day which is tomorrow. Plus tomorrow there is a bunch of stuff to do as well, including speed scraps, bingo, and a scavenger hunt. You should check it out, it will be lots of fun.

My first layout is one I did for the November 3rd challenge. The challenge was to pick someone and scrap about something you admire about that person. I picked Miss Callie and I have always admired her confidence, so that seemed perfect to me.

Next is my layout for November 4th. This challenge was to use a photo mask. Since I was working on this during my lunch hour, I didn't have a ton of kits or masks available to me. I found one in a kit called The Hands of Time by Scraps of Ellay. The kit was full of "antique" looking papers and elements, so I really wanted to do an older photo. I found one of my grandmother and grandfather Helm. As I was finishing it, the title just popped into my head. I think it turned out quite well.

The challenge for November 5th was to do a recipe layout. Since I'm not really the cook in the family, and I don't have any recipes committed to memory, this was tough. Plus I was again working during lunch, so I had a limited number of kits available to me. No cooking kits at all, so what is close...a golf kit...ok so it wasn't close but I liked the colors. I used a recipe Sharla found last year, and you use a bunch of canned veggies to make soup. What is nice is you can really use any veggies you love, and it is very easy to make. Since I didn't have a picture of the soup, I used a picture of my favorite cook...yeah I'm sucking up, but she is a great cook.

Challenges for the 1st and 2nd are at home, I'll try and post them this weekend. I do have my template challenge for last month. I really like how it turned out. When I got the Spooks and Smiles kit from Nicole, there was one paper in it that I just loved. But everything I played with it, I couldn't make it work. I think because all the photos I tried to use with it were Halloween photos. Here I used it with pictures of the babies in a pumpkin patch, and I think it looks great.

My last layout for today is my office desktop, which I made for the Desktop Challenge. The challenge was to base the layout on thankfulness or gratefulness. I used the kit The Hands of Time for this one as well and really like it. In case it is a little hard to read the note on the side, here is what it says.
Blessings...I am so totally blessed, I have a Lord that sent his son to die for me, so I would have eternal life...everything beyond that is just gravy. But he didn't stop there. He gave me a great family and friends who love and support me. A good job, nice home, food on the table, a car to drive, clothes to wear, three fur babies who are always happy to see me and even a computer to do my digital scrapbooking. It has not been a great year, I was laid off and out of work for the first time in my life, it was scary, but I knew God would provide, and he did. Everything I have I owe to him, and for that I am very THANKFUL!!!!

The last thing today is Nicole from Digi Designs by Nicole has a new item in her store and it is Christmas cards. They are a so cute and an easy way to have your own personalized cards. If you want to check them out, just click on the preview and it will take you to her store.

I hope ya'll all have a great weekend!!!!!

Wednesday, Nov. 4th

Hey all, today is the release of Nicole's Template Temptation Vol. 4 which is a set of great templates. I've used several already, and they really do make fast but beautiful layouts.

My first layout is Tucker in the local pumpkin patch, ok it is a local church's pumpkins that they sell, but they said it was ok for us to bring the babies over and take their pictures there. Unfortunately it was hard to get good shots, it was mid afternoon on a bright day, and enough people were around to keep the dogs distracted. But I liked this one. This used is October Haze by Modern June Creations.

Next up is Callie with her red shoes. She had such a good time posing with her new shoes. Of course, she loves her shoes no matter what the color. The kit I used is A Cherry on Top by Digi Design by Nicole.

Also my layout of Tucker and Cooper from Monday also used a template from this pack. I really like the odd shaped papers behind the photos. There is a lot of fun stuff happening over at Stuff to Scrap Blog this month, so hurry on over there.

Monday, Nov. 2nd

Can you believe it is November already...time is flying past so fast. I'm not sure what happened to this year, it has been a whirl wind. Today Nicole from Digi Designs by Nicole is releasing a new kit called Don’t Rain On Me and the colors are great and the elements are fun.

The first layout I did is Tucker and Cooper and I used one of Nicole's templates that will be released later this week. The colors remind me of fall without being traditional fall colors.

My next layout is Callie dancing in the rain...yes she swears she is dancing, although it looks more like she is jumping in the rain to me. I loved the word art that was included in the kit, and remembered Callie posting this picture on facebook, so I asked her to send it to me. And yes she became a home owner this weekend...what a wonderful girl!!!!

November is a busy month over at Stuff to Scrap, they have lots going on to celebrate Digital Scrap Day which is Nov. 7th. You should check it out at Stuff to Scrap Blog. Later...