{Just for Fun Layouts}

These were done just for fun ... my own product choice! ;-)

My mom's wedding. The button on the floral is really thick, so that is why the journaling scanned in blurry. It just names the church and reception locations. I love the paper, by Crate Paper. It has such a sophisticated texture to it...so beautiful IRL...Prudence Collection - Fortitude:

Miss Jae at her 1st bday party. Rosie is her nickname. There is a printed transparency over the photo, sorry for the blur/glare...

That's all! I did ALL the layouts in the last three posts in ONE day! Whew!

{Blue Crew: December}

Products Used:

Scenic Route Happy Valley Alphabet Stickers

American Crafts Thickers- Daiquiri

American Crafts Thickers - Sprinkles

American Crafts Adhesive Badges - Travel

Journaling Reads:

"Oooohhh my...lets just say...we aren't too good at finding our way around! Thank God for GPS ... otherwise we never would've made it to Nauvoo!"

Products Used:

American Crafts Adhesive Badges - Vacation

American Crafts Paper - Visa

Scenic Route Chipboard Circle - Out of Town

Journaling Reads:

"I love the DIRECTION we're going."

Products Used:

Scenic Route Happy Valley Alphabet Stickers
American Crafts Thickers - Sprinkles
American Crafts Adhesive Badges - Vacation

American Crafts Foam Pieces - Travel

We R Memory Keepers Paper - Mania

Products Used:

American Crafts Thickers - Poolside

Scenic Route Happy Valley Alphabet Stickers

American Crafts Paper - Bella Moda - Bold

{ Imaginisce }

I am lucky enough to be working with Imaginisce products this month! The Imaginisce company sent me a HUGE goodie box filled with awesome holiday product!

The yummy products I worked with in these layouts:

Imaginisce:
Snowy Joe Winter Christmas Collection:
Large Glitter Brads - Gumdrop
Small Glitter Brads - Gumdrop
Snowflowers
Cup O Cheer Sparkly Paper
Jo To The World Sparkly Paper
Jingle Baubles Sparkly Paper
Snow Soiree Sparkly Paper
Santa's Secret Garden Sparkly Paper
Tinsel to the Top Sparkly Paper
Holidoodles Rub Ons

My friend Burgundy and me from last Christmas...

My friend's daughter last Christmas....the journaling reads:

"Last year...was 2007...you were still a baby...you still had a pretty bald little head...last year...you still hand a nuk in hand...last year...was your 1st Xmas...you still drank from bubbas...and did walk around...this year...you talk to me...you're a big sister...this year....I love you even more!"

Here she is all grown up this year!

My friend Burgundy again...always stylish and chic ;-)

{Moving Out of the Nest...}

I have wanted to move out of my mom's house for so long. I've also wanted somewhere to live that was steady...I've been in college for 5 years...since then, I've lived in a total of seven different homes. I have made 4 hour roundtrips almost every weekend in that time. I jumped from wherever I was living at college, to my moms, and to significant other's homes. I hate it. Completely hate it. I'm tired of packing and unpacking and living out of bags.

On December 12th, I will finally get that. No more going to three different homes in one weekend.

I will live solely at Chris' house.

Our home.

I get to keep my toothbrush, hair dryer, and make up in the same place indefinately. LOL.

While I am absolutely excited about this, it's also harder than I thought it would be to "move out of the nest." A lot harder. I know I am an adult now, have been for awhile, but I am really a "home" person. My mom's house has been my home since I was 7 years old, and it's not even the actual house, its the FAMILY part of it. I hardly get to see my mom anymore (I used to see her every day on the weekends, summers, school breaks). I miss my pets like crazy. I miss my bedroom and just the "feeling" of being at home. It's hard moving my stuff out, and I'm sure its much harder for my mom.

Ahh, growing up.

I have off from student teaching today, so I am spending my day at my mom's house. Sadly, my mom is at work, so I'm just spending the day loving up the pets and my scrapbook room. I haven't really gotten a day for scrapping in SO long. It feels good to have the day to just create. That's one thing that won't change - my scrapbook room - there just isn't room for all my stuff at my new apartment, so I will just be coming back to my mom's house whenever I get that feeling to scrap.

I will post the layouts when I can! Most are for design team stuff!

{Heck Ya}

I want use this blog to mainly document important parts of my life and the world as they happen, so I can look back into the archives in the years to come. It's so fun now even to look back to a year ago. I love blogs!

So here is one of those posts. I took this picture this past Monday morning. The first time in a few years that I've seen gas for sale for less than $2. What was it, just three weeks ago that gas was $3.99/gallon? I found it remarkable these past couple weeks how QUICKLY the gas prices have come down. Baffles me that we have been paying close to $4/gallon for so long now, and then poof, they go down. It went down over 50%! That's crazyness to me. Now, I can fill up for a mere $24! Before it was about $50!

Today, gas has come down to $1.86.
I wonder how cheap it'll get?

{Not Even Thanksgiving Yet...}

But I am already so excited and in the mood for Christmas! Of course, it's because I have my own home to decorate this year, for the first time, so I am going all out!

Last night, my friend and I went to WalMart in search of a hair dryer...

But you can't just go to WalMart and end leaving what you went there for.

So, naturally, we stopped in the Christmas section.

And I decided I needed a tree...

So I picked up this one...

I've also wanted to "do up" our mantle/fireplace...because right now, there had just been a 16x24 photo in a thick black frame I had gotten Chris of him racing, which was nice, but hey, it's Christmastime and the apartment is in need of some chick-inspired decor. So I picked up some garland and lights and "did up" the fireplace with some candles and sparkley snowflakes. (I hate that cord, by the way). Voila! It's Christmasy!

Along with the cord, that big white space really annoys me....so today I am going to go get a big mirror that is sort of like this to occupy all that white space. Funny story...I'm pretty broke right now...my mom is paying for the tree for Chris & me, and she also got me those sparkely snowflakes. Then the lights and garland were only $4 together, and the candles were only $1 a piece at a Pier1 clearance. A mirror like this though...even though I found a good deal...is still $40. I have this bowl of loose coins in my bedroom that I've been saving up for a rainy day...and I think I just might have to go take those to the bank today so I can buy a mirror. LOL.

And then totally unrelated to decorating, this is my new favorite obession: Pomegranate Sodas! (Excuse the gross bottled, I tipped it over)...just mix a couple tablespoons of this oh-so-healthy syrup (right), fill the rest of the glass with sparkling water...and mmmm mmmm mmmm. Yum.

{Frames...}

Not just for photos....

I like this idea to make wall/any-kind-of-other-artwork-display/decoration....using patterned paper or fabrics + pretty/colorful frames.

{Inspiration}

{Great Read}

"It turns out there was an ancient French custom of putting a scorched piece of bread in the bottom of wineglasses - back when wine still needed to be decanted because of all the heavy sediments. The toast would absorb all that residue. It would absorb what was misplaced so you could enjoy what it was you were meant to enoy. The French called this process 'toasted.' That was where the word came from."

{GoTeam!}

{Reflect}

I used to read this quote all the time, think about it, but never make any change. Now that change has happened, I stumbled upon it randomly and thought I would share. Most people have already read it, but its a good reminder for all:

Life is too short to wake up in the morning with regrets,
So love the people who treat you right,
Forget about about the ones who don't,
And remember that everything to happen for a reason.
If you get a chance,
Take it.
If it changes your life,
Let it.
Nobody said it would be easy,
They just promised it would be worth it.

{ Click To See Larger }

{MoreDecor}

More ideas I would love some day for our home:

Not sure if I like the idea collage or the chalkboard look better in the kitchen:

I love love this mirror! Hopefully I can find one similar to Pottery Barns, without the $700 price tag:

And then, of course these are classic. I would put photos on them:

{WishList}

I can't believe how quickly the Christmas season is approaching. In two months, the Holiday Madness will be over! I was at Kohl's today picking up some clothes for student teaching (I start Monday!) and I hopped on over to the home decor section ... and found some gems I would like for Christmas! (I'm broke, darn it!).

Now that Halloween is over, I'm all for moving on to winter! (Just the decor, lol, not the actual snow + cold part)!

First we have this snowflake candle holder, its actually pretty large, even though it looks small here. I'd say its about a foot tall:

The display at the store looked sooo nice. In the picture above, it looks a little chinsey and cheap, but it looked really good in-store. That one had a candle kind of like this inside, instead it was white. It had that shimmery snow look to it and was kinda mottled like this:

Then there were these cute little candle holders to match:

Then we have the silver snowflakes, again a little candle holder:

And I suppose these would match the little silver snowflakes, but they're cool all on their own too, for year round: