Just What I've been W8ing for!

Today is the day! The reveal day for the June kit at Just Cre8!

I have 4 brand new LOs that I've had to keep under wraps. Here is one of them, all materials from the June kit:

I am so not used to keeping my scrapping a secret! But working with this kit is tons of fun. Lots of funky papers, ribbon, goodies, and the stamps were neat too. It is also the first time I've used SkribblzArt by Katrina Murphy. They are the neatest things! Sue has also included a digital download with the kit...designed by Tammy Nice. My first attempt at hybrid scrapping. :)

This is my first DT reveal day, ever. I am a newbie, so I hope I get everything right! Although Sue, Kat, Tammy, Melanie & Lori ahve been so great to work with. It is a fabulous team!

Sometime today, head on over to Just Cre8 and check out the June kit and the DT June Designs. I can't wait to see what everyone else has in store.

Scrapbook Art

I am still convinced that, for me, scrapbooking is not just a hobby, it is an Art. We take everyday, ordinary moments and create one-of-a-kind visual interpretations. We create with our own hands and imaginations. Every time I look at a layout -- mine or someone else's -- I always savor the emotions it provokes.

And that is the way I create my layouts too. I start with an idea and just jump right in. I always let my gut instincts guide the way I cut and place paper & embellishments. If I have a spark of an idea in my head...I just jump right in and try it. If it works, that's great! If it doesn't...well...it's a learning experience.

Even if you don't think you are creating a work of Art when you scrapbook, I think you are. No matter what they look like, your pages are created with your experience, strengths, talents, ideas, and heart. No one else would work with those photos and materials exactly the way you do. We scrapbookers are all unique. We are creative. We are fabulous!

My scrapbooking advice for today...jump right in. Don't be afraid. Be unique. Go with your gut. And believe in yourself...because YOU are a Scrapbook Artist.

Big steps!

A lot of people I know just dread the arrival of Monday. But I am the opposite, I think. Monday is a nice, calm start -- unlike most of our weekends! DH goes back to work, DD goes back to school, and the house is almost solely mine again for another few days. I can read my newspaper with breakfast. I can have a quick coffee with my neighbours. I can leisurely check my email and tidy up the chaos from Saturday & Sunday activity. All with out the rush-rush-rush that seems to invade our weekends.

Today I am excited, because my goal for this week is my DT projects for Just Cre8. I have the June kit on my scraptable and I am ready to go! We had a great National Scrapbook Day crop there on Friday, and there are tons of unique and creative ideas that appeared in the gallery. So go take a peek! It's right here! If you want a sneak peek of the June kit, you can check it out this blog...otherwise it will be revealed at Just Cre8 on May 15th. :)

This last week has been pretty exciting for us too. The kids started soccer, and for the first time, I am actually a genuine "team mom"! I love it already. There is nothing in the world as neat as watching your babies strive to learn and grow something new. Especially when you don't have to teach them! Independence is an amazing thing. Here's a pic of DD playing soccer in her first game. (She's in the dark blue jersey.)

It isn't fun, though, dealing with the aftermath of a sensitive seven-year-old girl who has just lost the first game she ever played, especially after she let in 4 goals in her five minutes of goalie time. Her coach is amazing, though, and really puts an important emphasis on working hard and having fun. I think it's going to be a great season.

Another big milestone! DD learned to ride her bike without training wheels!

So, just like her Papa promised, she got to go shopping this weekend for a new two-wheeler, which is a beautiful bike. She is so proud, and all of these steps she has taken in the last few weeks just shine in her face. You can tell her confidence has made a great leap. I love that, because I think it is so important that girls develop confidence and grace.

Well, happy Monday & happy scrapping! I hope you all enjoy your day. :)

What a whirlwind!

Wow! We have had an incredibly whirlwind week...I am certainly glad to finally have some time to sit and catch up on things, including my blog. LOL

Firstly, our trip to Regina went well. Dianne is recovering from a few procedures to help her get better so she can have the surgery she has been waiting for for so long. Thank goodness! We had some important visiting time with her and my sister-in-law, who had been in Regina since last Friday. And I was glad for the opportunity to show them that I support them every step of the way.

We also had some time to sit and visit with a wonderful friend of mine and her husband. (Hi KJ & Aaron!) And we took the kids to the Science Center too -- a nice little getaway for them. I am just so grateful that things are looking up for my mother-in-law. I hate to see how much she has to go through. Multiple Sclerosis is a horribly difficult disease. I've been saying little prayers for a long time for those who live with it.

When we came back on Thursday night, I found the Just Cre8 June kit waiting for me. Woohoo! The box was stuffed full of lovely scrapbooking goodies, including the April & May kit pieces I had ordered. The June kit...SO COOL! It has.........I can't tell you yet! LOL You will have to wait until the reveal at Just Cre8 on May 15th. ;) It will be worth it! Oh, and they are having a National Scrapbook Day crop on Friday, May 4 with awesome contests and prizes. You have to come check it out. We are having a Poker Run. Yes, a Poker Run -- scrapbook style. :) You can find the details of the crop, including the Poker Run, right here at Just Cre8.

On Friday, I went to the Hawaiian Spring Fling at Just Scrap It in Saskatoon. I had 20 hours of cropping time with my scrapping friends -- we missed my mom Janet, though. The "Bad Girls' Corner" just wasn't the same without her. :( I did 4 layouts on the weekend. Here are a couple for you:

These were both "cre8ed" using the Just Cre8 kits, April and May. I just love the stamps from the April kit. Those barcodes are way too addictive!

At the crop, I also won one of the BIG raffle draws...a do-it-yourself acrylic stamp making kit. I'd never seen or heard of one of these before. Well, I played with the kit today and it is way too cool! You design your own artwork, and it takes about 20 minutes to make an acrylic stamp. Seriously! I love it!

I also won one of the layout contests..."Extraordinary Moments". I entered one of my most heartfelt layouts, "Papa's Patch". It looks like this:

It is the story of how much my grandfather's raspberry patch meant to me when I was growing up. When he passed away 6 years ago, the raspberry patch was left untended and this very special place that I shared with my papa quickly disappeared beneath the thistles that choked out the bushes. When I returned to the farm last summer, the thistles were taller than me and so thick we could barely see through them. I thought they were gone forever. And then we saw a raspberry peeking through the thick thorns of the thistles. And then another. And another! My mom, my aunt, and I pushed our way through the mess and, for the last time, we picked buckets and buckets of raspberries. And the taste of those sweet, juicy berries reminded me that my memories of Papa in his raspberry patch will always be with me.

What a week. There was more...but I will save those thoughts for another day. Perhaps tomorrow. Until then...

Take care, sweet dreams, and please, hug someone special. Each day you spend with them is truly a blessing. ((hugs to my mom today...love you, mom))

Tough Times

I just wanted to say we've hit some rocky roads.

For those of you who don't know, my mother-in-law has Multiple Sclerosis. You can read her story here ... https://msors.mssociety.ca/Walk2007/Sponsor.aspx?&PID=926934&L=2 It is such a destructive disease...we have not really known the full impact until now.

Our Dianne is in the hospital in Regina. We've had some not-so-great news, so we are taking the kids down to Regina to see her, and spend some time as a family.

Please, if you are so inclined, say a few prayers for Dianne...for strength, for courage, and for hope.

Thank you...and ((hugs))

Pumped!

Well, the Just Cre8 May kit was revealed yesterday...and...WOW! I'm lovin it. :) I ordered a part of the kit and it should be here soon for me to play with! This is a peek at what it looks like:

It's the Basic Grey Scarlett's Letter collection, plus items from 7 Gypsies, Making Memories, Bazill Basics and more. Plus it comes with Just Cre8's own line of acrylic stamps and a new product, SkribblzArt Designs. I am still learning the ropes as a new Cre8ive Crew member at Just Cre8, but so far it is a fantastically enthusiastic and positive place to be! I feel right at home.

So come join us! It rocks!

At last!

I can finally announce that I have made the Just Cre8 Cre8ive Crew design team!

Yaaaaaaaay!

This is the first time I ever applied for a DT, and I am so excited to get started.

This site is so unique, I just love it. The kits are amazing -- tons of product and they include more than just paper and embellishments. What struck me most, was the creative use of "8" through the whole site and the range of styles and talent in the gallery.

You have to check it out...www.justcre8.com

Working with Sue, Kat, Tammy, Lori, and Melanie is going to be such a great experience. And I can't wait to see my first kit, the June kit!

Today is a great day. :) :) :)

Inspired???

Mo & Jo have left the building.

You see, Mo & Jo bring me insight and creativity. They push me to take risks in my scrapping, like just cutting into that new piece of Basic Grey I've been saving for a special occasion. They get the journaling for a LO rolling around in my head, and form my words onto the paper.

I love my scrapping MoJo. It is exciting and absolutely uncontainable. Like a cartwheel in the middle of campus after 4th year final exams. And sometimes the tiniest little things will set them into motion. A great photograph or a fresh bottle of Glossy Accents. New chipboard. An ad on television. A conversation with a friend. Chocolate.

But when MoJo is gone, scrapping is the most difficult thing in the world. I could have a whole weekend to myself and not get a stitch done if MoJo isn't close by. Just ask my friends at Friday night LSS crop night. I could work on a LO for six hours and it just never looks quite right. I could have four free and clear hours to work in my scraproom, but I don't because I feel no direction. When MoJo is missing, scrapping doesn't have that fire or that spark that I love so much.

Today, I am looking for MoJo. MoJo will show up sometime today and I know it. Once I fold those three loads of laundry. And tidy my kitchen. Shower. Make some phone calls. Go get the mail. Then I will unpack from my class and start looking for that sneaky MoJo. Maybe it's under that pile of paper............paper............that new Fancy Pants paper right over there on my scraptable............hmmmmmmmmmm........

They're baaaack!

Happy Scrapping!

Where's Your Pen?

I was working on a layout yesterday afternoon. The layout, "Papa's Patch", was complete except for a 5"x4" rectangle I had left for journaling. So I cropped a 5"x4" piece of co-ordinating cardstock and began to write. There wasn't much room, so I stuck to the highlights of why my grandfather's raspberry patch was so important to me.

Four sentences. Yep. That's it.

Wrong! I spent my childhood in that raspberry patch, following my grandpa, my hero, around. I listened to him tell stories for hours and hours. The raspberry patch impacted my life in incredible ways.

And here I sat, confining my journaling, my feelings, my memories, to less than 20 square inches of handwritten text.

Why? Because it fit on the page. That's where I "left room" for journaling.

I cut two more pieces of that cardstock and I wrote. On both sides. And then I cut three more. And wrote again. I wrote until I was finished. I wrote until I told the whole story of that raspberry patch. And then I bound the pieces together into a little book that I will tuck into a pocket on that page.

That is what scrapbooking is about. Capturing the memories. Don't just "leave room" for your journaling. Your page is about your pictures and your stories. So tell them. Long or short, just tell them.

If you want to see incredible stories of journaling, check out DawnDawn's blog link on this site. She has an incredible gift for journaling, and she will inspire you to express yourself fearlessly.

And after that, pick up your pen. Journal. Relive your memories. Share your stories. Write as much as you can and want to. Because that's why we scrap.

A-Tidbitz-A-Day

I've been meaning to get back into blogging for a while now. Things seem to have changed so much for me in the last year or so, but the constants in my life still remain the same. Somehow, though, my life seems so different than it was just a few short months ago. I think my perspective on a lot of things has come 180 degrees.

So what is new with me?

I've lost 30 pounds. I feel like a whole new ME!! I did it on purpose, if you are wondering, with good food choices and exercise. Not a lot, just a little. And slowly I am getting into the shape I never was but have always wanted to be. What a huge difference this has made in my life!

I try to scrap every day. It is my therapy and my creative outlet. I don't understand why I ever let it slide for weeks at a time. I've also made some attempts to come into the scrapbooking industry in a professional way. I teach at an LSS. I applied for an online Design Team. I submit to magazines regularly. It is time for me to take some risks and put myself out there...which is scary, but it is good.

My kids are growing up. I guess this is inevitable! Renee is seven and Curtis is four. My baby is going into Kindergarten this fall. Renee is getting more and more independent every day. I feel like I am preparing myself for a new stage of parenthood. The "SAHM with no kids at home" stage. There are so many things to look forward to and so many things to fear.

I am thirty. There, I said it. My 30th birthday was hard in many ways, and so much fun in others. I've finally realized, I think, that I am an adult getting older. And that I ought to seek out opportunities and goals while I can. Because life is short. I'll say that again. Life. Is. Short. It can yank you back by the shirt collar when you least expect it. Even at thirty. So, whatever I have always wanted to do, I need to do it now. Now. While I am still able to. And that is how I want to live my life from now on.

What is not new with me?

I am loved. By my husband and my children. By my parents, my family, my friends. By God. I have support and encouragement. I have shoulders to cry on and people who will help me up when I fall. I am blessed. And I am thankful for those blessings.

I am important. Every day I am here, I will touch someone's life. It's up to me whether it will be in a positive way or a negative way. Even though I often don't realize it, I am making an impact on this world in one way or another. This may not be new, but I think remembering this every day will make a huge difference in my life.

I am Me. I am me. I will always be me. And I do not need to measure up to the person next to me at dinnertable, at the supermarket, or at the Friday Night Scrapbooking crop. I am unique and irreplaceable. And I do have something special to offer in my lifetime, even though I am not quite sure what that is right now. All I can do is be the best Me I can be. This is the hard part!

Now, I am inspired and full of fresh thoughts. I am going to go clean my scraproom!

Happy Scrapping,
Mandy