Is it Friday Already?

Its officially Friday so you know what that means......Friday Fill-in Time

Questions courtesy of Jennifer this week; thanks, Jennifer!
1. Birthdays are a great reason to celebrate.
2. Fall is my favorite season because it isn't too cold and not too hot, not to mention I love the way the leaves look when they change.
3. I feel my best when I have had tons of sleep and am with people I love.
4. ______ is my favorite food! (I can't pick just one, I have tons of favorites)
5. First impressions can make or break you.
6. The best piece of advice I ever received was ___________. (wow this really makes me think, I think I could do a whole blog post about this one)
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to going to yoga before work, tomorrow my plans include working and Sunday, I want to sleep in but I can't since I am taking D to the airport !

It's a small world after all

Okay now that I have that God awful song in your head I can go on with my post. When I signed up to be a Stampin' Up! demonstrator I had no idea it was going to be what it is today. To be honest I did it because I knew I would be ordering a lot of stuff and could use the discount, plus my "stamp lady" was so cool I would do anything to help her. So I signed up because I knew
Dawn would get credit for the recruit and she deserves it, she works so hard! Never did I think I would be signing up to go to convention or spending my days off stamping and scrapping. However, I have been and I love it. I have met so many cool people because of Dawn and Stampin' Up! it is amazing.

Yesterday morning I get a phone call from Dawn asking me what I am doing because friends of hers are coming out with a paper line and she is going to their house tonight to help them assemble kits. Of course I tell her I would go, like I said I would do anything for Dawn. So with yahoo maps directions in hands we head off to help these ladies out. From reading the directions I had a general idea of where we were going; however, I didn't realize it would be right around the corner from my family church.

I am so glad I went, these ladies are great, we hit it off immediately!!! They are introducing a new paper line at CHA in July, and let me tell you it is awesome!! The line is Mollie and Mac after 2 of their children. How cool is that?!? We kind of invaded Mac's dinning room- cutting, punch and stamping paper getting them ready for a "swatch" book they will be giving out at CHA.

Mollie and Mac (not their real names) were kind enough to give us their soon to be released paper. Of course I couldn't want to get home and start scrapping with it. Since I hadn't finished all the sketches from my sketch class I thought I would kill two birds with one stone and use their paper for one of the sketches. This is what I came up with.....

I really wish I had a 12x12 scanner because my picture does the paper absolutely no justice. Since it is a 2 page layout (my favorite) I thought I would also post pictures of each page, so here is page 1 and page 2
I can't even begin to tell you how much fun I had with these ladies. All together there were 6 of us. At one point Mac went in the kitchen to get everyone drinks , when she came out she was carrying a cup with the flying WV on it so I got that cheesy alumni smile on my face and said "Oh My God, I went to WVU" and she said "I did too!" How cool is that, not only do we have scrapping in common but we are both Mountaineers!!! So Mac and I have a connection, but that doesn't mean Mollie (again not here real name) and I don't. In reading an email she sent this morning, I feel like her name is really familiar so I take a stab at it and ask if she is related to a girl I went to high school with, specifically her husband. Wouldn't you know it, she is. As a matter of fact, she is related to my high school friend and her husband is related to the high school friends husband. It is Mollie's mother that introduced my friend to her husband. Go figure! What a small world.

IDK what I did B4 Txt Msg

Up until about 2 hours ago, I had been unable to send or receive text messages for over a day! I know that doesn't seem like I big deal but I felt like I was living in the dark ages. I didn't realize how dependant I had become on texting until I couldn't do it any more.

I send tons of texts during the day; however, I am not one of those people that sends messages where you would need a decoder ring to figure out what I am saying. I spell out all the words and use correct punctuation. Sometimes I just want to say hi and let someone know I am thinking about them, other times I have useless information I need to share with someone (Lord knows I have tons of that) and other times I am sharing random news or other stuff.

Regardless of the content of my message, I send a lot. I felt totally out of touch not being able to text and am glad to be back in the 21st century and among the texting again.

Food for Thought

Here we go again with the Friday Fill-ins

1. A smile is the universal ice breaker.
2. __________ is my favorite board or card game. (not sure why I am leaving this blank, I love to play games and haven't in forever- I need more games in my life!!)
3. I would love to have more time with friends in my life and less BS!
4. When I think of the Summer Solstice, I think of balancing an egg on the table.
5. I just remembered I need to __________. (nothing, lately I forget more than I remember)
6. One of my favorite song lyrics goes like this: I have several answers for this one
"sharing a drink they call loneliness is better than drinking a lone"
"Smack Tina Turner, give her flash backs of Ike"
"My next thirty years I'm gonna settle all the scores Cry a little less, laugh a little more"
"Almost heaven, West Virginia.....All my memories gathered round her"
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to getting some sleep, tomorrow my plans include working and Sunday, I want to spending time with D before going to work!

I have no clue why I am awake

I got 4 hours of sleep yesterday and have been working like crazy, there is no reason for me to be doing anything by sleeping right now; however, I am doing everything but sleeping- Scrapping, Blogging and blog hopping. Good thing I am off tomorrow I have a feeling I will be sleeping most of the day.

Finally got to complete the layout for Sketch3 of the Got Sketch class, those of you that didn't sign up really don't know what you are missing, it has been a great class!! Anyway this is a 2 page layout is a "Tricked out Flipped out Layout" Basically the goal was to be able to get alot of pictures into one layout. I figured wedding pictures were the perfect one for this type of layout- I really wanted to scrap them; however, I was not looking forward to creating tons and tons of layouts with the same pictures, etc. So this is what I came up with. (Be wared not all of the pictures are the best but you get the general idea)



















This page has 4 pictures on it, here is what it looks like when you flip up the first picture,

Here is the second page of the double layout- This one has 4 layers of pictures

so here is what it looks like with the first one flipped up and the next picture flipped, and

flipping up the final picture gives you this look, When the 2 pages are next to each other it looks like this - since I am sure you can't read the journaling it is the lyrics to "Finally Found Someone" by Bryan Adams and Barbra Streisand.

So many lines of that song really hit home for D and I- we did start over coffee, even though I told him I wasn't a coffee drinker, he insisted he go to Starbucks after our first date! My favorite line is still can I call you sometime. I remember standing in the parking lot talking to D the weekend that we met and he says to me- so what happens now, are we going to exchange numbers or something? I swear I thought he would have never asked. "Did I keep you waiting" do I really need to explain that one, we started dating in 1999 and got married in 2007- Enough Said!!

Since there is no sketch tomorrow, I should be able to get caught up, I am a sketch behind, which isn't too bad considering I still haven't finished my Journal Your Christmas Project :)

Trying to get caught up

It took me a little longer to complete sketch 2 than I wanted it to, the important thing is I completed it. I have an idea for the 3rd project, hope to work on that tonight after work or tomorrow before going to my Parents for the Father's Day celebration.

I love the ATG however, I don't like how unforgiving it is. Once you put that paper or picture down, there is very little you can do to get it back up and move it or reposition it. Which is why some of my patterned paper is a little crocked. Oh well, it speaks to my personality! Made the scalloped edge all by myself, first time ever, kind of excited about that, love how it turned out and am sure I will be doing it again, stayed tuned for future scallops.

Having some Fun on Friday

1. Traveling to all 50 states is high up on my bucket list.
2. My favorite quote is You can't handle the truth; it's from A few good men.
3. Because everyone else was doing it, I felt inspired to start blogging.
4. Strawberries are best covered in chocolate.
5. _____ in the last dream I remember having. (I know I have dreams because everyone does, but I don't remember them)
6. The most enjoyable time to go for a walk is right before the sun sets.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to scrapping before work, tomorrow my plans include more work and Sunday, I want to spend the day with my family since it is Father's Day!

Another Roll bites the dust

I am so excited, I kicked another roll of ATG tape and that can mean only one thing, I have been scrapping and creating a lot more than I usually do and that my dear is a good thing!!!!

I think I have about 200 of my convention swaps ready to go- or as ready as they can be without the stamping on them. Meaning I have adhered all of my paper to the bases and have cut all the other paper I need to stamp on. The scan isn't as clear as I would like it to be but you get the idea. The base is Taken with Teal, the crimped layer is Chocolate Chip. The "Enjoy" sentiment was stamped in Taken with Teal on Very Vanilla paper. The flower center is Taken with Teal and the flower is stamped in Chocolate chip on Apricot Appeal. "Every Moment" is stamped from the "Enjoy every moment" stamp set, again I used Chocolate Chip. I used the spiral punch on the side, I love the look of the spiral punch, to me this card really says "not to self, take a minute and enjoy life" Convention is 44 days away, I am sure I will have everything done by then, it just gets a little nerve racking when I realize how close it is. The problem is I am not sure if SU! will retire the spiral punch and I won't know until July 15. So the goal is to have all the stamping done and be ready to adhere by then. As soon as the list is published I will be able to finish the card by either using the spiral punch or going to my plan "B".

Got tons of pictures printed today, hope to get a lot of scrapping done. The sketch for yesterday was amazing, I can't wait to get working on that. I love all the creative juices that are flowing lately, hope to keep my mojo going.

The most amazing dinner of my life

was had last night. Being married to a sales manager has its ups and downs. The downs are that he travels ALOT and is almost NEVER home, the ups are events like last night. D's boss was visiting from California so D, his boss, a customer, myself and a friend of the boss went out to dinner last night. Let me tell you it was like nothing I ever experienced before and I have had some pretty intense meals in my life. We went to Del Posto which is one of five restaurants owned by Mario Batali better known as "Molto Mario"

I don't know where to begin describing the experience, it was that good. I am very rarely speechless and there were several times last night when I had no idea what to say. It was one of those evenings were everytime a course came out and people took the first bit they were like "Oh my God, amazing" or "You have to try this, it is out of this world!" every course was better than the last. I am so not the type of person to try new things when I go out to eat so I was very nervous about what they might bring me.

My appetizer was: Insalata SALUMI Misti with Erbazzone and Stuffed Morel
We had 2 different pastas: Del Posto AGNOLOTTI dal Plin with Parmigiano-Reggiano Butter and Toasted Semolina CRESPELLE with Sweet Garlic, Pancetta & Pesto (I think that is right, anyway, they were out of this world) My main course was PORK Loin with Lucanica, Ceci Spezzatino & Garlic Mustard and D had the Seared HALIBUT with Roman Vegetables Vignarola & Smoked Almond Puree. What meal would be complete without dessert, you have never had anything like the SOUFFLE di Cioccolato with Hazelnut Gelato, I thought I had died and gone to heaven.

Not only was the food amazing, but we managed to find a great wine on the 66
page wine list- yes you read the correctly, 66 pages. I took a picture of the bottle with my phone so I would remember the name of it and of course the picture isn't as clear as I would like it to be so I can't read the lable right now. I will see what I can do about fixing the pic and getting the name of it soon.

All in all it was an amazing night- great good, good wine, amazing company and CO Bigelow Lemon Hand Wash in the bathroom, does it get any better than that?

The block as been lifted.....

Not sure how it happened or when but I was able to come up with a layout for yesterday's sketch. As you know I am a die hard Giants fan (if you didn't know that you can get some background here and here) Since there is no telling when my favorite boys in blue will win another Superbowl (especially with Michael Strahan retiring), I thought I better cherish this win as long as I could.


The pictures are mounted on a pocket, right now there is nothing in it; however, I am going to put this in there I love the idea of printing your journaling on card stock, not sure why I never thought of it before. Not sure if you can read the journaling- "New York Giants Super Bowl XLII Champions!" "The greatest football story every told. Giants defeat Patriots 17-14. New England loses perfect season why the Giants defeated them on Super Bowl Sunday."

I knew this would happen.....

Since I signed up for the sketch class, I have been on a roll, cranked out 3 pre-class projects and didn't think twice about it. Had tons of fun creating them and did it in record time. Class offically begins today and here I sit blogging instead of scrapping. I keep looking at the sketch hoping something will jump of the page at me, so far nothing!! I don't even know what pictures I want to use. This is not good people, not good at all.

Has it really been 7 days?

Questions courtesy of One Knutty Knitter; thank you, Knutty!

I'd love to feature your questions, if you'd like to leave some for future use please feel free!

1. Idle hands are ______. (I have no clue what to say here)
2. I love using my new Mentha Shampoo and Conditioner by CO Bigelow in the shower.
3. My favorite time of the day is when D and I are both home and chilling on the couch together.
4. The last tea I drank was iced tea made from the mix- I love it!!
5. I like to eat a lot of fruit-instead of big meals, in the Summer.
6. My mother always said "don't play ball in the house".
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to getting home from work at a reasonable hour, tomorrow my plans include working, hope to scrap before I go in and Sunday, I want to relax after work (this has been a crazy work week)!

Having so much fun.....

If you haven't signed up for Got Sketch 101 shame on you!! (Yes Anna and Luz, I am talking to you) We are having so much fun chatting and scrapping.

The most recent assignments was a chipboard project, yet another layout made with Stampin' Up! products and papers. It was the first time I used the "build a brad" I loved it, can't wait to do it again, it is so cool that you never have to go digging through your stash of brads looking for the perfect color again!!

You can't really tell from the scan (not the best scan, in real life it doesn't come off the pp like it looks like it does) but some of the balloons are on "pop dots" so they come off the page.

I am not that skilled with the craft knife so I decided to take some sand paper to the chipboard bracket (not su!) I love the way it turned out! They are posting another sketch tonight, can't wait to see it!!

Feeling Accomplished

Today was a rather successful scappy day for me. Not only did I decide what my SWAPS will look like for convention, I got all of my cardstock cut! That is no small feat considering I am making 288 cards (kind of an odd number but that is because I am using 8 1/2 x 11 paper, cut into 4 and there are 24 sheets in each pack of paper and I got 3 packs of paper) Because of this amazing device, it took me less than 20 minutes to cut all of the base cards and a second layer of paper.

Seriously this thing is amazing- it cuts through 10 piece of card stock at once. You can read all about it here

As if getting all the card stock cut wasn't enough, I finished my first roll of ATG tape, that means I have done some serious scrapping lately, it takes awhile to go through 36 yards of adhesive. I was a little nervous about changing the roll since the first time I loaded it I did it while watching a tutorial video, no fear- I DID IT all by myself!! *big cheesy grin*

Tomorrow I hope to finish running paper through the paper crimper (I had to give my wrists a break, they were killing me) and get all of the crimped paper mounted on the base card stock so that all I have left to do is to actually stamp (go figure) I need to get my butt in gear considering convention is 55 days away. Kind of impressed with myself, usually I wouldn't start something with 55 days to go, must be getting responsible in my old age :)

As soon as I find the sample I made of my SWAP I will post it, I have no idea what I did with it, not like it is a big deal by the time I am done I will have 287 others to show you!!

Happy Days are Here Again.....

I the new owner of this: Of course I am not exactly sure what all of these means, but here is my new machine in all of its glory:

Inspiron 1520, Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, 2.0GHz, 800Mhz 2M L2 Cache
Jet Black Color with Matte Finish
3GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm
High Resolution, glossy widescreen 15.4 inch display (1440x900)
Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 3100
250GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive for I1520
Microsoft Windows XP Home Service Pack 2, English
XP DELL RESOURCE ,BACK-UP DVD 1520
Media Direct 3.5

Image Restore
Windows Media Player 10
Internet Search and Portal
Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access
Icon Consolidation Application
DELL SUPPORT CENTER 2.0
Integrated 10/100 Network Cardand Modem, for Inspiron
ADOBE ACROBAT READER 8.1 DIM/INSP
8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive
Roxio Creator DE 10
Integrated High Definition Audio 2.0
Dell Wireless 1395 802.11g Mini Card
Integrated 2.0M Pixel Webcam
McAfee Security 9.0, 3-Year Subscription, for Dell Inspiron / Dimension
85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery, for Inspiron 1520
1 Year Limited Warranty
Soft Contracts - Banctec
Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Initial Year
Type 3- Third Party At HomeService, 24x7 TechnicalSupport, Initial Year
Warranty Support,Initial Year
Adobe Premier Elements 4.0 and Photoshop Elements 6.0 Software,DIXV English
Jet Black color w/ 2.0M pixel Camera
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor
You have chosen a Windows XP System
DataSafe Online Dim/Ins/XPS
DataSafe Online Dim/Ins/XPS 1YR-FREE
Insp Datasafe 3GB,1YR(Incl in price),DHS
To activate your online backup account, go to Start, Programs, DataSafe Online

I am not sure what makes me happier, me getting my new computer or no longer having to share a computer with D!! I love the man with all my heart but certain things are not meant to be shared and computers are one of them. I like having all my favorites right where I want them, and my files organized as they need to be, etc. Not to mention I can get on line whenever I want and not have to worry about interfering with his work.

When did all of this happen, when did having a computer become a necessity? Back in my day (I know I sound like I am a thousand years old) it was a big deal if a family had a computer in there house and if they did and it could access the internet you thought they were really important. Now people (when I say people I include myself) often have several computers/laptops in their homes and no one still uses dial up, do they? I can't believe how times are changing- what next, people will be accessing the internet via their cell phones (wait, I do that now) okay so really, what next?

A Rose by any other name wouldn't smell as sweet.....

Anna took this off someone's blog ao I took it off her blog.

What Kelly Means

You are a seeker of knowledge, and you have learned many things in your life. You are also a keeper of knowledge - meaning you don't spill secrets or spread gossip. People sometimes think you're snobby or aloof, but you're just too deep in thought to pay attention to them. You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone. You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together. At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together. You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow. You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily. Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is. You are a free spirit, and you resent anyone who tries to fence you in. You are unpredictable, adventurous, and always a little surprising. You may miss out by not settling down, but you're too busy having fun to care.

What's" Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Kind of suprising how much of it is right on....

You have got to go.....

If you haven't seen "Sex and the City" yet you need to run, not walk to the nearest theater and check it out. It was everything I hoped it would be and more. I loved that they gave enough background that you didn't have to be a fan of the TV show to know what was going on, while filling those TV fans on on what had gone on over the past 5 years. There were subtle references to the TV series throughout the film, but again if you weren't a fan of the TV series you can still see the movie and enjoy it.

Not only did I get to see a great movie today, I got to spend the morning with my husband. We stopped at the local bagel place for breakfast sandwiches (gotta love carrying a big purse) so we had something to eat during the show. All in all it was a great morning- highly recommend it!!