It's Tuesday...lots of scrappin'!

I'll be doing lots of scrapping tonight trying to finish up my projects for the August Paper Posies kit! It's super fun and summery so I can't wait to post my work.

I feel like I've finally recovered from my weekend of travel. My classes at GASC in Michigan went well for the most part - I was a little nervous and not feeling well on Friday, but things went so much better on Saturday! I was really stressed when I arrived Thursday night because my luggage was lost in Minneapolis (I had no clothes and my class samples were in my suitcase). I had to go buy clothes and make-up for the next day so I didn't have much sleepy time Thursday night.

I'll start to post some picts from our Chicago trip and my teaching trip over the next couple weeks.

We're going on a short overnight trip on Thursday and Friday to Kansas City to see Glen's sister and family. We haven't seen them for two years and they will be traveling through so we want to be sure to meet up with them. After that, I'm ready for a break from traveling!!!! :)

Tomorrow, I'll post my projects with the August Serendipity Scrapbooks kit....think butterflies until then! :)

Back from CHA, Chicago and published projects!

We had a fantastic trip to Chicago to celebrate our anniversary! I'll definitely share more over the next week or so and share some fun picts! (I came up with a totally cheesy idea for a mini album with self-portraits, and I can't wait to share some of them because they are hilarious!!!)

I also thoroughly enjoyed my first CHA experience on Friday! It was sooooo overwhelming and intimidating to be there in person and finally meet all of my online friends! I loved checking out the new product and thinking about what I want to buy!

This week will be super busy for me as my in-laws are visiting all week from Arkansas, and I'll be traveling for work on Wednesday. I'm also preparing to teach at GASC in Michigan this weekend. After this week, I hope things will slow down.

This morning I got a chance to work on some cards and I have a couple of layouts I need to do too. I can't share them yet, but here's a card that was recently published in the June issue of CARDS magazine. Also, here's my very first published item - a set of altered Heidi Swapp frames that I made about our cruise - this was in the June/July issue of Paper Trends. I was so excited to see these in print!

Chaos and it's only 9:30 a.m.!

Boy, when it rains....it pours! We've been having some trouble with the ignition on our Ford Focus the past couple weeks. We were going to drop the car by the Ford garage on our way out of town in the morning to have them fix it, but then major trouble started last night... Glen ran an errand and couldn't get the car to start. The key would go in, but it wouldn't turn at all. We tried for a long time before we finally had to tow it to the local Ford garage. Then, we called the garage where we bought the car this morning (after going back to the local garage to try a couple more tricks). We ended up deciding to take it to where we bought it (and having it towed again).

Then, we also been having some trouble with our van as well. Whenever the van is idling, it tends to overheat. I hate car repairs! I'm hoping it will be a simple fix.

I'm getting stressed about leaving tomorrow. I'm hoping I can get my work all taken care of early this morning and then head home. Nothing is packed and I still have cleaning to do. Plus, I'm hosting Bible study tonight. I'm also having a little neck and shoulder pain, so I'm debating about getting in to see the chiropractor really quick before we leave. We'll see how the morning goes, I guess.

Anyway, I don't mean to have a downer post, but sometimes you just have to vent about what's going on in your life. Back to the grind...

Monday, Monday

This week is just going to be nutso! We are both incredibly busy getting ready to head to Chicago for our 4th anniversary and to attend CHA on Friday. I came in to work early this morning so I could leave around noon to go home and finish my cleaning. I'm starting to get sick of cleaning as it's literally all I did the past four days. We're going to a BBQ at a friend's house tonight as well. My entire house needed a good deep clean so I'm glad that I've spent so much time doing it.

I have had almost no time for creating, although I have spent time working on the class samples for when I teach at the Great American Scrapbooking Convention (GASC) in Grand Rapids, MI at the end of July. I'm very excited to be teaching for Rusty Pickle and hope to continue teaching for them about once a month or so. And, at some point in August, I want to develop some Rusty Pickle classes of my own and starting approaching my local scrapbook stores about teaching. I have to admit I've been in a creative rut since the Amazing Race. It's feeling a little too forced so this vacation will be a nice break and hopefully I'll come back with tons of picts and feeling inspired! :)

Well, I best get moving. I can tell it's going to be a looooooooonnng day!

Finally saw Pirates's 3!

Last night, we finally went to see Pirate's of the Caribbean. It was really good, but I found myself getting confused a lot. I think I'll need to see it several times so I can catch everything that was going on. I was sooooo sad at the end (I'm a big crier at movies and most anything, actually), but we stuck around until after the credits to see the last scene. I felt a little better after that! And, I already confessed to my husband that I have a married woman's crush on Johnny Depp AND Orlando Bloom! He laughed at me! :)

Yesterday, I got a ton of cleaning done! I did things like clean out my oven and clean out a few cupboards. I'm starting to feel somewhat congested with all the dusting I have been doing. I have bad allergies to dust. Maybe if I would keep on it, it wouldn't get so bad. It's more cleaning for me today, but I'm hoping to have a crop party for myself in my scrap room later tonight. Tomorrow, I want to spend my whole day (after church) scrapbooking and getting ready for CHA.

Oh, we spontaneously went out for supper last night too! We went to Bennigan's (gotta love a coupon - I'm the coupon queen)...it was really good! We had a bad experience there quite a while ago and hadn't been back - they redeemed themselves!

This morning, we're going to start the day by having a Caribou Coffee caramel cooler. We discovered these on our recent trip to Minnesota and decided every Saturday morning we would get one. They're not cheap, so it's definitely not something to get all the time.

Well, I better get moving...time's a-wastin'!

Another busy day!

I was so unmotivated to clean yesterday, but I finally just drank some Dr. Pepper and put my ipod on and got moving! (I know I'm a huge nerd!) I would say I got about half way done with what I wanted to do. This morning I need to continue where I left off.

I got my project done for the Paper Posies newsletter - if you're not subscribed, just go to www.paperposies.com and you'll get the newsletter full of ideas from the design team! But, then my creativity left me. I tried to make a card, and I just wasn't feeling it. It was like I was trying to force it. I just had to quit. I feel like I need a little break from creating for awhile, but I have several projects I need to work on today. One of the things I need to work on is my last monthly kit (August) as part of the design team at Serendipity Scrapbooks. Kristen puts together fantastic kits with a great mix of manufacturers each month.

And, I found my brown Mary Jane Crocs yesterday!!!! It's a little more than I wanted to pay for shoes, but I know I'll wear them a lot. I was so excited to find them because I searched high and low online and already went to one mall in town (we have 4 malls). My friend found them! They are actually very cute shoes!'

Last night I vegged on the couch and watched So You Think You Can Dance and that new show Do You Know the Lyrics. I love SYTYCD...so fun to watch! The new lyrics show is really fun as well - it looks somewhat difficult. I might do okay if I was on as I know the lyrics to a lot of songs.

Well, I better get moving! Lots of cleaning on my agenda today, pictures to be sorted and ordered for scrap projects, and then Pirates of the Caribbean tonight! We haven't seen it yet and there's only ONE theatre in town that's still playing it. Can't wait! :)

Rusty Pickle Sneak Peeks!

Here's all the new lines from Rusty Pickle for Summer CHA: Grandma Pickelicious, Grandpa Pickelicious, Pirate Princess, School Daze and Addams Family. I LOVE it all! Of course, Mayflower and Captain Jack have already made their debuts a little early!

Busy Day!

I'm enjoying a cup of coffee this morning and thinking about all I need to do today. I'm hoping the coffee will give me a little extra energy to get going. My first order of business is to get a project posted for the Paper Posies newsletter. I would also like to make a few quick cards for a publication call. Next on the agenda??? CLEAN and clean some more! I'm planning on cleaning the living room, kitchen, and the sun porch today. I'm also going to meet a friend around 4:00 today as I really want to get a pair of those new Mary Jane chocolate Croc's. I'm hoping I can find them because I'm having the hardest time finding them in a size 8. Well, I better get moving! I'm going to also post sneak peeks of Rusty Pickle's new lines for CHA.

Upsy Daisy Designs Sneak Peek!

Okay, I totally forgot I was going to post this, but here's a look at Upsy Daisy Designs new paper lines for summer CHA - they're called London Blush and Pretty Petals. UDD is also coming out with new stamps and rub-ons!

Crazy, Busy Summer!

Two days in a row! Yay! :) The rest of the summer is going to just fly by! I can't believe how busy we are in July!

I went to Bible study last night and had a wonderful time. We're going through the Power of Words by Nancy Leigh DeMoss and it is fantastic! An area I definitely need to work on as I can be pretty sarcastic and hurtful with the things I say. I was really convicted that I need to encourage and lift up my family and friends instead of tear them down. I also need to be more disciplined and obedient in my quiet time, which right now is pretty much nonexistent. I need more discipline in other areas of life as well - in cleaning my house, cooking dinner, etc. Lately, it's been too easy to put things off and just relax in front of the TV. I'm very seriously considering making myself a chore chart. I tend to do very well with lists! :) And with the month we're going to have - a little discipline would go a long way!

Last night I spent some time cleaning up my scrap room. It was a disaster from the Rusty Pickle Amazing Race. I need a clean surface to work on and it was pretty bad! I have some scrapbooking to catch up on tonight and then I'm going to clean myself into a frenzy tomorrow. If I have a cup of coffee to start my day, I'll be energized and ready to go!

Have a great day!

My first post! I deleted my other half-attempts at blogging so I could start fresh!!! :) I figured it was high time I got a blog going so I could keep up with everyone else.

Probably the most exciting thing that happened to me recently was making the Rusty Pickle design team. I am sooooo thrilled about this opportunity as I really want to start teaching classes, etc. I really put my heart and soul into my projects and learned a lot about myself in the process. Let's just say the last two and a half weeks have been crazy!

So, now I'm getting ready to take a trip to Chicago to celebrate my 4th anniversary and to attend my first CHA show!!! I'm very excited to go meet a lot of the people I have "met" online and do a little networking. I need to figure out where else we're going to visit while we are there. I can't wait!!! I also majorly need to do some house cleaning because Glen's parents are coming for a week and a half. My house is a diaster!!! It's been such a busy summer! :)