~As for me and my scraps, we will serve the LORD!~
Feel free to visit my photo blog 365 Project...Photos of Faith, Family, Friends

Friday, October 31, 2008

NSBR but OMGosh I want one (or 2) of these!!!!

Have you ever wanted something so bad you could taste it? Have you ever thought, "if I can't have it, I would at least like for one of my friends to be blessed with it"? That is where I am at right at this moment....
I have a confession to make...I am apronly challenged.....sigh, there I said it....
I have always loved aprons, I remember hanging on to my Mamaw's apron as she would cook on our woodstove when I was growing up (yes, that is not a typo or a joke lol), I drool over all these gorgeous retro aprons I see, but I do not own ONE apron. Honestly if we had any extra moola to spare I would have already bought one this week! Maybe it is my upcoming 32nd bday...maybe it is that I am finally at a point in my life that I savor those "domestic" things, who knows, but I am seriously jonesin' for an apron...and not just any apron....no.....I want one of the Apron Queens aprons! Sadly, or not so sadly, IF I win I would be getting the barbeque men's apron for Lane for Christmas. My "baby" boy has become quite the grilling guy! (He is 13 1/2, so I hover behind him a LOT, but he makes some killer burgers and such)....
Ok enough of the blabbering!....Would YOU like to win one of her wonderful aprons (or TWO!...or FOUR?!) Then just hop over to her blog HERE and read up on how you can! Then, hop over to the shop HERE and check out all of the aprony fabulousness that IS RickRackAttack (aprons by the apron queen)....leave her a comment, tell her I sent you (I am not beyond brown-nosing any more than she is beyond bribing ;) ), tell her what a wonderful person I am and how much I should have a new apron to start my collection, send vibes to the random number generator to pick MY number...or if you win you could just send it to me :D....or keep it yourself (but then you HAVE to promise me that you will post pics of you looking apron-queen-fabulous so that I can live vicariously through you :D)
Have a VERY Happy Halloween all!!!! I will be back later with Halloween pics!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

it's a boo-tiful life :)

Can you believe it..I open up my inbox this afternoon and I have a "booooo" in there...no no not a "bad" boo, Leigh from Bloggeritaville boo tagged me :D so um TAG, I'm it!


Now, this is how the Blogging Boo will work. Go to as many friends as you want and tell them they've been "Boo-ed". Have them link back to your blog to pick up their Halloween Treat (picture) and tell them to "Boo" their friends. Then, put the picture in your side bar so everyone knows that you've already been "Boo-ed" and to send the pic to someone else. So, are you scared yet!!?? BOO!!
one more time......
1. Take picture, put on sidebar
2. Tell people they have been booed
3. Link back to who booed you

now if I boo you, go forth and booooooooooo people.

I am going to "boo" these BOO-tiful bloggers
1. Kari-Relocated Dixie Girl
2 Diane- Carjazi Scraps
3. Trina- My Chaotic Life
4. Ayumills- Pink Penguin
:)

oh yeah, and I found this lil snippit on Alicia's blog...I am not sure whether to laugh at the irony or cry at the reality! :D

Monday, October 20, 2008

Marie-Therese Gown GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

Marie-Therese Gown GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!
Oh....My....GOODNESS.....
Ok any of you who know me, KNOW how much I love having a baby girl I love love love having my boys too! There is just something about having a lil girl that brought back so many childhood dreams and memories and many other long forgotten emotions!
One of the main things I completely LOVE is the whole "dress up" thing...with boys you get that at Halloween and that is about it...with a li'l girl ANY day is Halloween! You can always dress up, play with hair, put on makeup (lipgloss is "makeup" right?)
ANYWAY, I came across this blog the other day that has me nearly crying tears of girly joy! This artist, yes artist, there is no other way to describe her talent, creates the most gorgeous works I have ever seen! I just had to let you know about her, go to her blog and check them out....bring your hankies b/c they are truly enough to bring a tear to your eye (or at VERY least you might drool on your keyboard ;) )....
LOVE this!

Sunday, October 12, 2008

another chance to win AND save money...

Partly because of my addictive personality, partly because of the economy, and partly because I just can't resist a good deal, I have become excited over giveaways and money saving blogs....now I have found a blog that is all about saving money AND is having a giveaway!
It is called Stretching a Buck and she is giving away a $25 Kroger g.c. this week!!! How cool is that?!
Just click HERE for more details and your chance (or 3) to win ;)

Thursday, October 09, 2008

More layouts (3..4...um FIVE from last night/today!!!)

:) hello....AGAIN!
Ok I am on a scrappin' roll!!! I did 3 new ones since I last blogged...no wait, 4....um 5!
The first 4 on here are not new ones but they are ones I wanted to share b/c I loved how they turned out!!!
This one is using Kami's (Ziggle Designs) Sk8r kit! I actually thought I would only use it to scrap pics of Lane, but as you can see, it worked perfectly for Tink's pics too!


ok...now...we have to talk about this stupid online craze concerning "flair"...."flair" used to be a word used to describe (or make fun of) a certain restaurant's "bling" that their waiters/waitresses wore, am I right?
I had NO interest in it when it hit the digiscrap scene, of course one of my besties kept talking about it and showing me different pieces...they were cute but eh, what did i need with digital flair?!.....sigh, then one night, just to see if I could, I decided to make A piece of flair...just one...just to see if I could manage it from scratch....I am not a huge fan of the quirky little sayings flair pieces, but I thought "ok I MIGHT deal with a piece of photo flair"....
one pieced turned into 2...then 3...then...well you get the pic! The problem NOW is that I want a REAL button maker so I can have these in real life to pin all over the place!!!! (yes all of those pics are mine, even the butterfly ones ;) i had a very good photo day a couple months ago)


Then a site had a contest for a canon printer if you used their items that were their "deals" that week, and yep, they involved flair :P (but you had to use THEIR pieces, so these are not my layers that made up these flairs)....

I did not win, don't think I even came close or was even really in the running, but I loved the layouts none-the-less :)

NOW we are to the new layouts :)...
This first one I did with a RAK I recieved from Andrea & Jules Designs (Alice) from ZigZag Scraps :) (Alice gave the kit to Andrea to give to a lucky winner at dst), Sept. 30th would have been my papaw's 74th birthday if he were still with us and I have been missing him somethin' awful the past couple weeks...he & lane were SO close and alike in so many ways from the time lane was born (he loved all of his great grandbabies but Lane was the only one old enough to have gotten to spend much REAL time with him)...ANYWHO (before I get all teary eyed and snot nosed again), these are some pics of the 2 of them in 1997 :)...ty ty ty Andrea & Alice for RAKing me with this adorable kit! Funny Farm from Jules Designs


Then there is this simple, but oh so sweet one I did of Daniel (my nephew) & Tink...the pic was taken last summer (2007), but it looked so cute with this kit by Irene Alexeeva (um have I mentioned how much I love her work?!....This kit is available at TheDailyScrapper for a VERY limited time!!!! go grab it while you can HERE (read the article first...she is such a sweet soul!)
She is also exclusive to The Scrap Orchard, all her kits are a must have! (my bday is coming up in a few weeks...hm wonder if hubby would grant me a bday wish...like putting me on Cloud #9)
Seriously you have to go check out her store....Irene Alexeeva


Then there came this...lol
After church last Sunday, Tink wanted to pose in her good clothes for pics...As soon as I took them, I knew I had to have Shauna's (Pineapple Plantation Designs) A Girl's Best Friend kit to scrap it with, how freaking cute did this turn out?! that alpha and the bling just totally rocked this layout (even the staple has bling on it!!!!).....the journaling says (& is repeated) "Baby, it don't mean a thing if it ain't got some bling"..."A hand on your hip and one on your lip" (this is what one of her teachers says to get the kids quiet, and "miss dara" does it with as much attitude/spunk as Tink does)....and "Fashion isn't a statement, it is a way of life"....
Keep in mind that 90% of Tink's clothes come from Goodwill's 99 cent kids' clothes day lol, she has baby gap, old navy, and several other brand names from it! she LOVES going to Goodwill!!!

:) then there is this one that is out of my box (way too clean and straight compared to my normal layouts ;) ), but that I REALLY like!!! I did this one using this Apple Cart Challenge Freebee by Polkadot Plum...this is a really neat twist of a challenge! You are given a mini kit and you must use EVERYTHING in it on your layout....HERE is the A.C.C. thread, go check it out too!


And last, but definitely not least, is a layout I did for Kami's "Bring It!" challenge (title is linked so you can go play too!)...this month it is a challenge to scrap "it is the little things that matter"...
at first I had wonderful visions of Tink's tiny baby toes pics, Elijah's sweet grinning pics from when he was a toddler, and pics of Lane's precious baby curls 12 yrs ago (he didn't get hair until after his first birthday...none of my kids did lol)....then yesterday I was outside taking pics of just random fall things. We have a tree in the side yard that never turns colors until late October/early November at the earliest. As I was walking past it, a glint of red caught my eye and upon closer inspection this little leaf is what I found....the leaf is upside down compared to all the other leaves on the tree, it is the only red one, and it really stood out to me.....all of the sudden I seriously felt like God had just reached down and gathered me up in His arms and had given me a big "I love YOU, princess" hug like my husband does our daughter...it was a "little thing" that really mattered ;)....
The journaling reads:
It’s the small things that make all the difference sometimes, but in order
to witness & appreciate the small things, one must first take a minute
to refocus...a minute to reevaluate, a moment to simply quit looking
& let God reveal Himself to them.
I have never been shown a burning bush of direction,
I have never been shown a pillar of fire by night,
I have never had an arc angel visit me as I went about my day,
but God reveals Himself, His will, & His love to me on a regular basis.
On a few occasions it has been a profound, monumental moment,
but most of the time it is in a subtle, sweet, surprising whisper.
A little ray of light shining through the blinds, illuminating one of
my children’s still sleeping faces...
A soft breeze that plays through my hair like my Mamaw used to
when I was a child, reminding me of what a blessing she &
Papaw were in my life...
A giddy feeling when my husband walks
in after work, reminding me of our first dates
Or even a simple red leaf in the shape
of a heart, nestled amongst bigger, green leaves
Just a simple reminder that sometimes
God just wants me to know just how much
He loves me....yeah, it’s the little things
that make life so wonderful...


This layout was made using just a few of the items in the collab I mentioned the other day from Kami & Irene....which is NOW AVAILABLE!!!! Birdilicious is a must have!!!!
I will post some Fresh Fruit tomorrow or sometime this weekend (new stuff at the orchard comes out on Fridays) for you to feast your eyes upon ;)....until then...thanks for stoppin' by!!

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Blog gift...aka "freebie" :D

Back as promised (on time and all *wink*)...I tried and tried to do a preview of the li'l things I have for you but I could not do a decent preview for the life of me....soooooo it is going to be just a teenyhalloweeny mini-grabbag (mini as in 3 li'l items) :)
Just click HERE.
Have you seen the new look over at Designing Moments?! Carla has been working her butt off to make the site & store even better than it was before! Unless you have ever talked to her one on one, you have no clue how much work, heart, and love she puts into that site...
Here is the Collab available now at DM :) go have a look-see and check out the designers over there! Trust me, no tricks, just treats (as in eye candy *wink*)!

2 more layouts?!

Can you believe that I actually scrapped TWO more layouts last night?! Yes TWO...and I am paying for it today since I only slept a whole 3 hours last night ;), but I absolutely LOVE how cute they turned out!
The first one I did as part of the October Element Challenge (that challenge is clickable if you are interested in joining in on the fun!) at the Scrap Orchard. I used the Spooktacular Mega Kit to make it :)...I am actually quite proud of my lil wordart I made using the elements in the kit! lol The 2nd layout is one I made using that GORGEOUS collab I was talking about last night (being on the CT definitely has some HUGE advantages!)....I told the boys I want them to let me take a bunch of pics of them so that I can do some scrapping of them too, but until that time, I will continue to scrap my li'lest pumpkin....anyway, here are those layouts and the previews of the kits they were created with!






I will be back later today with a lil something for YOU from me :)

Monday, October 06, 2008

:) finally got some scrapping done!

:) I have been on the "sorta" CT at ScrapOrchard for a couple months now and I am LOVING it. The girls there are so much fun and are so super talented. I have been doing mainly commenting and such, but Kami (Ziggle Designs) has allowed me to have several of her kickin' kits in return! SO I finally got around to scrapping a couple layouts....one is using the October Mega (not part of Kami's store but for $3 for such a HUGE kit, duh pretty much a no brainer huh?), one is using a freebie from Shauna's (Pineapple Plantation) blog, and one is using the Ethan's Backyard Perfect Pair kit from Kami AND Shauna!


Credits/info:
journaling
Never the oldest, never the youngest...Too young to
do what your older brother does and too old to
act like your little sister gets to. Never quite
sure where you fit in and always trying
to find the place that
feels right to you.
I can’t wait for
the day when
you will see
that you have
already found

that place. It
is right where
you already are...
Smack dab in
the middle of my
heart...

Background paper- Duchess Designs
5 patterned papers & bling circle- Scrap Orchard October Monthly Mega!!!
tag alpha- Ziggle Designs
font- djb kennascript
flair/acrylic- mine



Credits/info:
journaling
We spent the Spring of our youth together, & the summer of our life is well into
its August. I look forward to our Autumn and await our Winter because i know
that true love stories never have an end...


:) dh & I have been together since a week before I turned 17 and he turned 19 (we have the same birthday lol)...this pic was from last year before our birthday...:)

Autumn Whisper Add-on Free"bee" by Pineapple Plantation Designs
font- djb kylie2



Credits/info:
"Today you are You,
that is truer than true.
There is no one alive
who is Youer than You..."

My youngest nephew, Daniel, on a rare day when he was letting me take a bunch of pictures of him...:)

Credit:
kit- Ethan's Backyard by Ziggle Designs & Pineapple Plantation Designs
alpha- All Taped Up by Ziggle Designs
quote- Dr. Suess

font- djb kylie2

There are SO many fabulous things going on in the Scrap Orchard shoppe right now! So many great new items (on top of the great items already there), AND now Irene Alexeeva is finally selling at the Orchard!!!! Let me tell you, this gal is UBER talented, UBER sweet, and UBER UBER generous! I have followed her blog for a few months now and LOVE LOVE LOVE everything she comes up with! Maybe some day if I am really really diligent and come up with some super layouts, I will make it on her CT *crossing fingers, wishing dust, and all that stuff*...
Anyway, her and Kami have come out with this freaking adorable kit called "Birdilicious" that you simply HAVE to be on the lookout for...I am guessing probably Friday...hm.....
Ok, here are just some of the new goodies from last Friday's Fresh Fruit at Scrap Orchard and some of Irene's absolutely GORGEOUS kits now available!!!




(I simply LOVE Kami's new kit and alpha!)

Here are my faves from Irene's new shop! (if you get a chance, stop by her blog HERE and tell her congrats on the new store! You can probably read back a bit and get to sample some of her fabulous blog gifts!)









isn't it all just too gorgeous?! So if you are lucky enough to have some cash in your paypal or if your credit card is not yet maxed, get your butt over to The Market (at Scrap Orchard) and check these out!!!!

Friday, October 03, 2008

yeah another contest link

*blush* I am getting so bad about blogging like this huh...but I REALLY need a new purse (I am currently using one that I "borrowed" from Tink...it was one she wanted at a yard sale...sigh)
Now there is a great lil contest going on to win a slammin new handbag/purse....All you have to do is go HERE and sign up!!!!
The purses are really really gorgeous! So if you win, and don't want it, you can always mail it to me ;)...go sign up!
**Thanks Kari for the heads up!**