Scrappin' Gram

Published!

2011-10-02T12:47:00.002-04:00

When you least expect it....I whipped up this LO in a flash at the last minute of the design call...Just goes to show you...you never know. I love doing layered titles and I think that's what makes the LO so nice. Aidan and Shane last year at the pumpkin patch...the products I used were so old I am almost ashamed that I still had them, but they were perfect! I even made the pumpkins myself using a crimper and an oval punch. Kinda makes me ready for Fall.....

Helmar Adhesives September Sketch

2011-09-23T06:23:00.004-04:00

I love these products,,,especially the pop dots and the quick dry, oh and the liquid pop dots---oh my they are fabulous!. They have a wonderful blog and a very talented design team. Every month a sketch is posted...the minute I saw it I had this LO in mind. If you would like to do your version, here is the sketch for you! You can link it on the Helmar blog too!

Back to Reality

2011-08-30T13:13:00.003-04:00

The last week before I came back to work was CRAZY! We were warned and worried about a Hurricane Irene coming up from the south, which was, once it slammed into the Outer Banks in North Carolina heading straight into Long Island. It's was all anyone thought of for days...preparing food, water, ice, batteries, candles...tying down furniture, evacuations of homes and hospitals on the coast and then hunkering down to wait. All things considered, Long Island did pretty well, lots of coastal flooding and a storm surge, trees down....many without power still to this day, but no one was killed. All around though, is the buzz of chainsaws. There are leaves and branches littered all around and even more are plastered onto all the screens and windows. I feel for all those people who live near rivers, where the rains just filled them to capacity and they flooded the areas. I will take a seacoast over a river any day. At least the tide goes out.

The summer is officially over for me....I am back to work. Classes have not started yet, so it is quiet, but the students are moved in, Matriculation Day is here, and a new batch of freshmen will be filling our halls tomorrow for the first day of classes. I am teaching two classes, but they are both late starts and do not begin until the middle of September...but I am all ready to go anyway. I am thinking of trying to get put all my lectures on Power Point....that way, when a Senior Moment strikes, I will be prepared...but I hate Power Point!

Today is my daughter Cara's Birthday....the day she turned 18 she started college...jeez that seemed like last year...time sure flies.....she is out of college 11 years already!

Trying to get back on track!

2011-08-11T10:55:00.002-04:00

OMG it has been so long since I have blogged I am almost embarrassed...actually, I am embarrassed, especially since I see that I have followers,,,,, I am so sorry. I think that maybe after ACBailey closed I lost my motivation for blogging. I have been scrapping and doing some really nice stuff, so I will endeavor to get this going again and upload some new LOs. Have had a majorly busy summer, enjoying being off, traveling and taking tons of photos....so you know what that means. Stay tuned....

that was a long few days!

2010-04-25T09:18:00.001-04:00

So much for posting in a few days...I look at the date and it's been almost a month!! I cannot keep track of the time these days. Seems like I am always on the run and busy til I flop into bed for a quick 6 hours and right back to it the next day! Been trying to keep up with the new scrap class I am taking. It's called Dimensional Details and right up my alley.....lots of junking up and ink and stuff.....the big problem is that it take a while to do all that stuff. I am liking the way most of the LOs are coming out and will post a few here and there when I can. This LO is the first one I did....LOVE, LOVE this BG Kioshi - purples, greens and lavenders...right up my alley!!

2 months??

2010-03-24T18:42:00.001-04:00

Where does the time go? I promise I will update this over the weekend! Been so very busy with work and the Design Your Life class that I have had zero time ---and of course, the weather here has been insane too - like Mother Nature going thru menopause. Have a new laptop with ni photos or oything else on it, so I need to get to the PC...
Have a great Thursday!!

Design Your Life

2010-01-22T19:31:00.004-05:00

I love to scrapbook, but I really never "learned" how to do it according to principles of design, so I enrolled in an online class with Cathy Z from Big Picture Scrapbooking. So far, so good - I have created a bunch of layouts using her sketches and am amazed at how many photos I am getting on a page. What this has got me doing is looking at photos in a different way - seeing how pieces of a photo tell the story I want to convey without taking up the whole page. I am struggling a bit with the 8.5 x 11 LOs but they do work.
I love doing the 2 page 12 x 12s and the clean simple designs are perfect for getting a bunch of photos on the page. Still having some trouble with the lack of embellishments. These two layouts are from the first two weeks of the class. Whattaya think?

Bye Bye 2009!

2009-12-31T16:24:00.002-05:00

Not exactly sad to see you go!
As we enter another decade.....wishing you all blessings and memories that will take you through the year...
And if you are taking down your decorations, don't throw those cards away...make a LO out of them. This was something that Ali did a few years ago and I have finished off the year doing it ever since!

A Belated Merry Christmas!

2009-12-28T16:46:00.005-05:00

Talk about a speed week!!!! Work got crazy, as it does at the end of the semester...then we had a MAJOR Blizzard - a record 26 inches of snow the Saturday before Christmas, which put me waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay behind. I am proud to say though, that I did get everything done - cooked, cleaned, wrapped and ready for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day - usually I just do a big buffet bash - my entire family - all my kids, my grandkids, my sister and her family and my niece and her family...all jammed into my tiny house - and no one seems to mind at all! It is always a great, fun time and this year was no different - lots of good food and some tasty cocktails - the hit of the evening were these little candy mice that I made. I could not resist posing them with a mouse trap and featured on the very front of the plate are the Three Blind Mice, which had the kids howling in laughter! I bought crazy hats for the kids and we did our annual song fest. I hope someone got a better photo than this one though. The hats were Santa heads and Snowman heads and really cute but I think maybe too big for most of these little heads!
This year, I had Rich's family the next day for a sit down dinner - it was very nice, but I was WIPED out with two days of cooking and cleaning up. It did not stop me however, from running out to do some after Christmas Shopping!!Now that I have recovered, I am getting ready to take an online Scrapbooking Design class - I really don't "know" how to scrapbook, so when my friend Connie talked to me about it, I just figured I'd go for it. I am already in a panic about my 1st assignment! Will keep you posted though!

Black Friday - hooray!

2009-11-28T19:28:00.002-05:00

We had such a great time on Black Friday - pre crack of dawn shopping with Dana and my niece Maria. We were at Kohl's at 3:45am - the store opened at 4am - we walked in, got what we wanted and were on our way to AC Moore for 5am opening - and this is so cute - two men where there buying Cricuts for their wives - I helped!! There will be two extremely happy scrapbookers come Christmas morning...and two guys who have amassed a huge number of good hubby points....I picked out 4 cartridges for each of them and the housing and blade to cut chipboard and a spare mat and of course, some vinyl!! We grabbed our stuff and then were off to Toys R Us, Michael's, Target, Bath and Body Works, Bed, Bath and Beyond and a quick bite at Panera...finsihing off at Marshall's. It was a lot of fun and laughs and we were home by 10:30am! I started decorating and putting the tree up- Cara and Jami both came over with their kids....I wiped out at 10pm.

Altered Clipboard

2009-11-20T19:00:00.003-05:00

Welcome to the AC Bailey Jingle Bell Hop! With the holidays literally around the corner, the AC Bailey Design Team has decided to help Santa (and you) out this year with some fun and easy projects to help make the holiday gift season a bit easier. And just like Santa, we've also gotten some extra help this year and asked some additional elves to help out and post some of their cool projects too! And if that isn't enough help...we've also arranged for some early Black Friday sales just in case you need some products to get the projects completed.
So come out and meet our "Elves"...check out their projects...leave a comment on their blogs and be eligible for a prize - upload some of your completed projects from any of the tutorials into the ACBailey gallery and be eligible for another prize! Projects need to be completed and uploaded into the galleryby Tuesday, November 24th at Midnight Eastern to be eligible for a prize.
If you are new to my site, I hope you take the chance to look around and find a bit of inspiration. I have not been a great blogger lately - the day job sometimes requires a lot of major effort and that eats into my fun time. I am going into my third year with ACBailey and I can't say enough good things about the company, the products available and the great gals and talent on our forum. After you've checked out my tutorial for an Altered Clip Board, be sure to click the link that will take you to Connie, who has a great project for you on her blog.

Altered Clip Board – a Great Gift for Teachers and Coaches

I make a few of these every year for teachers and coaches and they are always a big hit!

Supplies:

Clip Board for an Office Supply Store

Mod Podge Matte

Foam Brushes

Patterned Paper of your choice (you need at least 2 full sheets – one each for front and back and a bit for the inch that the paper doesn’t cover)

Embellishments

Threading Water Punch

Thickers

Jenni Bowlin Bingo Card

Because these are so wonderful personalized for the receiver - I just pit a link to where you can find these products.

A few notes before you start – Sometimes when using Mod Podge, air bubbles can occur under the paper – in order to avoid that, I seal the clip board with a coat of Mod Podge, and then when it is dry I paint the Mod Podge on again and then adhere the paper making sure to press down hard. The heavier double sided papers seem to work the best and automatically coordinate.

Steps:

Seal the Clip Board with a coat of Mod Podge and thoroughly dry.
Measure your paper and cut using the Clip Board as a guide.
Coat one side of the Clip Board with Mod Podge and adhere paper making sure to press down hard to avoid any bubbles. Using craft knife, trim where necessary. Repeat for side 2.
As you can see, the paper is just a bit too short, so you will need a coordinating paper to cover this area. I used what was left from cutting the width and edged it with a Fiskars Threading Water Punch. Adhere with Mod Podge to the back of the Clip Board.
For the front of the Clip Board, where the clip is, just run your paper to the edge of the clip and using your fingernail “score” and cut about ½ inch, then using your fingernail “score” the angle of clip and then cut. Once you have made the cut adhere with Mod Podge – better larger than smaller – you can always trim. Repeat this step for the other side of the clip.
Trim any excess papers and ink the edges, if desired.
Paint a thin coat of Mod Podge on the back of the covered Clip Board. When dry, repeat on the other side – I usually just hold the clip open til it dries – it only takes a few minutes.
Now the fun part – embellish using chipboard, buttons, stickers, sayings – whatever goes with your design…just remember not to put any lumpy stuff on the front of the Clip Board where it would be used to write. Put a flower or chipboard embellishment on the front of the clip and personalize with the name on the back. I tie ribbons in the hole and leave a long ribbon to hold a pen.
Once all your embellishing is done and adhered well, paint a thin coat of Mod Podge over everything – front and back. Let dry and repeat.
Add ribbons to clip If desired, the Clip Board can be sprayed with clear acrylic for extra protection.

Jingle Bell Hop and a Pre- Black Friday sale!!

2009-11-17T15:39:00.006-05:00

AC Bailey Designs Jingle Bell (Blog) Hop!

November 20th thru 22nd

AC Bailey Blog

With the holidays literally around the corner, the AC Bailey Design Team has decided to help Santa (and you!) out this year with some fun and easy projects to help make the Holiday gift giving season a bit easier!

Just like Santa, we've gotten some extra help this year and asked some of our "local" ACB Elves to help out and share some of their favorite Christmas Projects and Gifts, too! AND... we've arranged for some early Black Friday sales just in case you need some products to get your projects completed ;)

So, come on over, meet our Elves and check out their fun and easy Christmas project tutorials.

Leave a comment on their blogs and be eligible for a prize - upload some of your completed projects from any of the tutorials and be eligible for another prize! (all comments and uploads must be posted by 12am EST 11/23)

so, if that wasn't cool enough....there's this!

AC Bailey Designs Sale

November 20th thru the 27th
Enjoy Black Friday ALL week!!
Take 40% off ALL
American Crafts
Cosmo Cricket
Kaiser
Staz on inks
Bulk Buttons and Ribbons
and EVERYTHING in the While Supplies Last Section!
*Offer not valid for Albums.*In stock items only.*One coupon per customer, cannot be combined with any other coupons.*
Discount will be taken from the price shown in your cart.
Use code BLACK to get your discount.AND...
Buy a Gift Certificate and get another for half the amount FREE!
Buy a $10 GC and get a $5 one, FREE!
Buy a $100 GC and get a $50 one, FREE!
*Limit 1 per customer*
Free GC cannot be used until after DEC. 1st*Additional GC Code will be sent separately to the Buyers email address provided with the order.

Time to stock up!!! I love a good sale-see ya there!!!!!

Boo not Moo

2009-11-01T06:55:00.004-05:00

The DT over at ACBailey hosted a Midnite Madness and everyone needed to create a project using the following poem---
so clear off those tables and turn on your light because you will need to be able to choose some Cardstock as Black as Night .......
now take a clue from the spirits all wispy and slight and add to that Black some Ghostly White .......
when those two things are done, it will be time for a bit more fun....
dig deep into your button stash and make up some pumpkins that cannot be smashed
and now's the time for a little Trick or Treat!! Add a bit of ribbon, oh so neat!
Ghosts and Goblins parading around, dressed as cute as can be,
Time to dress up your layout with some bright, shiny bling,
and be
one step closer to creating something
As the bell tolls twelve, many screams will be had if you don't find a place to fit at least three brads!
Now look at your project and what do you see?
A mad composition, thanks to the DT!
I used the ACBailey October Goodies KOTM - there are a few left - and today is FREE SHIPPING! Just click on my link and it will take you right to the store!

No Fear

2009-10-31T07:41:00.005-04:00

of Flying???? Anyone who knows me knows I am terrified to fly....and when I took a ride in this tiny plane, no one believed me! I have had this LO sitting on my table just waiting to get photographed and posted. Labor Day weekend I went to New Hampshire to visit my friend Gail and her husband took me for a ride in his plane - it was a beautiful Fall weekend in new Hampshire and we had a lovely time and a lot of laughs. Took a bunch of silly photos...so more to come. Loved working with these great papers too!

A Little Sassafrass Lass and the 1st Day of School

2009-10-07T21:42:00.005-04:00

Since I have no school age kids I need to wait to get some photos of the grandkid's first day of school. Shane started Kindergarten this year and he was so excited to be able to go on the BIG yellow bus! He loves his teacher "pretty much" but thinks there is too much work and not enough play. Shane is perpetual motion and on the go every waking minute. My daughter Jami is starting to "think like a scrapbooker" and thought to take a picture of the bus as it pulled away! I love how the Jenni Bowlin Bingo card looks as a frame for the photo of the bus. One of these days I will really stitch on layouts instead of using a pen. I used crackle Paint on the Chipboard apple and also used a White Signo pen to outline the Jillibean Soup alphas for the title.
Aidan started second grade and just looking at his picture I am amazed how grown up he looks - he is getting so tall and what a smile - that chin! I got him a few Tony Hawk shirts and he loves them and wore one on the first day of school. He really likes his teacher this year and I have the feeling this will be the year where he will shine. Loved the little Chipboard stuff with this kit - I covered the bus with paper and make windows with Rock Candy Stickles - on the pencil I used my trusty Crackle Paint...jeez I love that stuff. ACBailey is getting ready to have another event....can't spill the beans, but stay tuned ;)

ACBailey October Goodies Kit of the Month

2009-10-03T09:07:00.003-04:00

Oh My! This kit is so adorable I am wishing October away just to get some new Halloween photos of the grandkids!!! I absolutely cannot wait to start working with this kit, so I think maybe I'll do some Fall layouts first. These kits go fast... if you want one, click HERE

World Card Making Day!!

2009-10-02T14:57:00.001-04:00

Did you know that THIS Saturday October 3rd is World Card Making Day???

Yes, and I researched the history-
It began in 2006 as National Card Making Day. Founded by Paper Crafts magazine to bring card makers together at the beginning of the busiest card-making season of the year, it was first held on October 7, 2006. The initial celebration involved the Paper Crafts magazine audience only; however, due to the positive response it received and the worldwide popularity of card making, the holiday became known as World Card Making Day from then on. It is now in its fourth year, World Card Making Day is celebrated annually on the first Saturday in October. It's a day for the card-making community -- hobbyists, retailers, and manufacturers -- to unite and celebrate the connection and creativity that is the heart of card making. So, I went to the Papercrafts site and found this!

World Card Making Day is a holiday especially for card makers around the world to Celebrate the creativity of handmade cards and the personal connection that they create between friends and family as well as to kick off (and get a head start on) the holiday card-making season. How many of YOU have already started your Christmas cards???

We here at AC Bailey want IN on the festivities, too! So, we will have another weekend contest here at the AC Bailey forum to celebrate the art of card making!
Join your ACB Design Team and special guests TONIGHT for challenges, a contest, and some learning...as only they can do! And of course, we will have PRIZES!!!

Get ready for some more fun ladies- it is coming your way!
All official posts to be launched Friday evening in the Forum - be here you will not want to miss this!

Win a Spot in the ACBailey Blog Hop!!

2009-10-02T14:55:00.002-04:00

Enter to win a chance to be a featured Blog during our AC Bailey Blog Hop in November!

The design team has come up with a little blog challenge for you. Sign up by October 7th for the challenge in which you have a chance to win a prize along with the opportunity to be included in a unique AC Bailey blog hop, giving your blog additional exposure and visitors.

Here's how it will work:
1. Sign up for the challenge in our Forum (you must register first), with a link to your blog. You have until October 7th to sign up. (If you don't have a blog yet, but want to start one and join the challenge, that's fine, as long as you get the link to us by the 14th.)

2. Everyone who signed up will have 1 week, from October 7th to October 14th to spruce up her blog. Some ideas might include a new header, a new background, frequent postings with interesting content, cleaning up your page elements, maybe adding some blinkies, (links to AC Bailey will score some points ) The idea is to make your blog represent you and your style. The Design team will post a few links to tips and tutorials for blogs during this time.

3. From October 14th through the 17th, the design team will visit all the blogs entered in the contest. We will be looking at overall design, uniqueness, and blog content.

4. Three winning blogs will be awarded a prize from AC Bailey Designs and will be chosen to participate along with the Design Team in a Blog Hop in mid November!

Can't wait to look at all the cool blogs! Good luck!!

ACBailey Fall into Scrappin' Crop

2009-09-27T09:17:00.007-04:00

What a fun time!! Some wonderful challenges and even a chat with Jenni Bowlin! Although it was a busy weekend for me because of "other stuff" too, I was able to complete a bunch of challenges along with the challenges my own and if I am lucky, since it is cold and rainy today, I may be able to do a few more. One of my challenges was to create a layout using labels that you love. This idea had been in my head for a bit and I was pulling labels off stuff whenever I bought anything - so they were all ready to go. I used October Afternoon paper and die cuts, and Thickers for the title (as usual) and a funky Prima flower. The second layout I did was from a fabulous sketch that Connie posted. I reall struggle with primary colors, so that in itself is a challenge for me. Shane's yellow soccer shirt left me no options, so I went with Basic Grey June Bug and offset it with some white Bazzill scalloped cardstock. Since no layout for me is complete without a button or a flower, added both and a few brads for good measure - and of course, a Thickers title. And no, I did not stitch on my layout - although I do love the look, I used a white signo pen and went over the dashes a few times so that they would look like real stitches. One of these days I may find a sewing machine at a garage sale and really sew on my layouts, but I don't see that happening in the near future. I am happy when I can get a layout done! If you have some time, hop on over the the ACBailey forum and check out the crop challenges - you have til tomorrow at noon to get them done and be eligible for the great prizes!

Fall Into Scrappin' Online Crop

2009-09-16T19:34:00.002-04:00

We're having an online crop over at ACBailey!!! Tell your Friends!!!!

Join us the weekend of September 25th - 28th for a fun filled online crop! We will have Jenni Bowlin on for a quick Q&A on Saturday morning and Tracy Weinzapfel of Helmar and Clear Scraps doing a product Q&A on Sunday. Of course there will be online games, challenges from our Design Team and LOTS of goodies given away. (You could even win one of the new Cricut Cartridges!)

Visit the Forum today to take part in some of the fun already started with a Scrap Quest game and "And she told..." referral contest. (You must be a registered member to play)

Trying to Get into the Groove

2009-09-12T09:57:00.009-04:00

Now that public school is open, the traffic is back to typical Long Island yuckky - my commute has more than double just because of the sheer volume of cars on the road. While I am sitting in traffic I can see the leaves on the trees just starting to turn. And luckily for me, I have friends who commute at the same time, so I do get to chat a bit -"hands free" of course, now that I have figured out the Blue Tooth. I still struggle to get up in the morning because I really am a natural night owl and would prefer to stay up til 1am and get up at 7am...oh, well, I try to get to bed by 10pm but it's usually 11:30pm and 5:30 comes very early. Getting a bit of scrapping done - The ACBailey September Goodies Kit of the Month is just adorable...I cranked this LO out last night and cannot wait to get some pictures of the grandkids getting on the school bus. This kit is so sweet - Sassafrass Lass, Maya Road, Prima, fabulous ribbons...Take a look..............These papers are so cute - and so colorful I can't wait for some more photos of the kids. There is a paper with ice cream cones that will be perfect for doing a layout of the huge Ice Cream sundae I shared with my friend Gail when I was up in New Hampshire last week. Coming soon....photos are being printed at Costco as I type ;)

Back to School for Me!

2009-08-28T19:46:00.005-04:00

This summer sure went quickly. I feel like I just finished up last semester and I am ready to start a new one again. Classes start Monday and another bunch of Freshman will be starting - it's fun though watching these tentative teenagers come in as freshman and in a quick four years, leave as mature adults and it's humbling to be part of the process. I guess that's one of the things that fueled the scrapbooking frenzy of the last few days. I think I was afraid I would not get back into my room for a while. I have plans to make a mini album of the photos from CHA, but I could not resist doing a little layout of myself and T!m and him teaching the Make & Take, which I photographed and cut out.......My friend Gail took the photo and it's all blurry - I am not sure whether she shook the camera or was all a-twitter being around T!m :) This is layout was done with the Pink Paislee Captivating Line - just love the toasty browns and blue. I added a Jenni Bowlin Bingo Card and used Puffed Thickers for the title, which I outlined with a brown Sharpie and inked up a bit with Staz-On to make them stand out more - they are white with tiny blue polka dots and look really good in real life.

Belonging to the LI 3-H Club

2009-08-21T07:44:00.005-04:00

HAZY, HOT and HUMID!!! I has been almost 10 days of the most oppressive weather - so hot and humid. Up until now, this summer has been pretty cool - lots of rain in June, but a cool July and beginning of August...and then BANG! No time even to acclimate to this. I don't do well in this weather and have been whining for a week. I also went back to work, so I am cool during the day which I think, makes this weather even less tolerable when I get home. Need to make some cards for this weekend - a Sweet 16, a Graduation and a Wedding - will post when they are done - it is torture sitting in my hot little room under the OTT light. Here's a layout I did before the 3Hs hit - it is done with the ACBailey August Goodies Kit of the Month. I used Core'dinations Cardstock as a base and sanded over an acrylic frame to have the blue core show through the brown paper. I also
carried the swirled dots on the journaling tag off the tag and onto the page using Dimensional Pearls. Thickers, as usual for the title. I absolutely love those things.
Just a reminder - today is the last day of the awesome sale over at ACBailey - making some room for all the new stuff we picked out at CHA. Some of the Thickers are half price!!! Check it out!

I'm BAAACK!

2009-08-02T12:11:00.004-04:00

What an exhausting but fun time - seeing all those new releases had my head spinning - lucky for me I wasn't doing all the ordering or I would have broken the bank!! Really got me into the mood to get some scrapping done and use some of the products that I hate to touch because it is so pretty. The Freaky Friday Challenge over at ACBailey was alot of fun! We had to use 4 different patterned papers, 7 buttons, more than one photo, at least 2 different fonts and some older techniques, like photo turns, paper clips or eyelets. I used Chatterbox "Fabulous" paper and it is rightly named - the texture and colors were wonderful. Thickers are also 10% off this week !You can buy them Here

2009-07-27T06:47:00.005-04:00

Woo Hoo! Off to Orlando for CHA! Cannot wait to see the new stuff up close and personal!! Have you seen any sneak peeks??? I am in LOVE with the new Jenni Bowlin and the new Maya Road embellie type stuff - forget the papers, I like just about everything!! Love the new Basic Grey though - what a surprise!! See you in a few!!

Lazy Blogger

2009-07-16T19:23:00.004-04:00

Gee! My last post was the 4th of July??? Where is the time going? For most of the last two weeks I was working at my "real" job - and we had Freshman Orientation, so I was there to meet, greet and register our program's new students - It's always fun to see a new class come in - so young and tentative - and to be able to witness their growth by the time they graduate is incredible! I have been fitting in a bit of scrapping this summer - definitely not as much as I had expected to do.

This layout is from a Kodak Moments sketch that I just loved - and as soon as I saw it, I knew the picture and papers I would use.
This paper and chipboard is from the Prima Dude collection. I used Core'dinations cardstock and sanded around the photo but it did not show up very well. The alpha is SEI and the little soccer balls are Queen and Co. felt. I used pop-dots under some of the stars to make them stand out and lately i have been into tying buttons or chip buttons with fine hemp used to make macarame bracelets. I really like the look. I started a Flip Flop Album with the ACBailey July Goodies Kit of the Month,
but I haven't put any pictures into it yet. These My Mind's Eye Papers were just perfect!! I always struggle with yellows and oranges, but both the LO and this little album turned out quite well. I have the August Goodie kit sitting on my table and it's just gorgeous. I need to get working on some layouts and projects with those supplies for the launch of the kit on the first of the month. Since I will be a CHA in Orlando and won't be back til very late on the 30th, I really need to get a move on because I don't print my own photos and I will need to decide which ones I will use and upload them to Costco. Enjoy this very warm summer evening!

Happy 4th of July!!!

2009-07-04T07:37:00.003-04:00

Wishing you a wonderful and safe day with Family and Friends! Thanks to those who sacrifice to keep America the "Land of the Free"

Two of my Little Guys

2009-07-01T21:13:00.004-04:00

are Cub scouts and a few weeks ago had a Moving Up ceremony. In an earlier post, I spoke about Colson receiving the Arrow of Light Award, which is the highest Cub Scout Award that can be earned.
I did a 2 page layout with some of the photos that I took of the ceremony, the citations he received and his Bridge over to Boy Scouts - and instead of journaling, I wrote a letter to him. The papers are called Industrial Park - great blues, golds and grays, perfect for Cub Scout layouts and come with a die cut that looks like a big gear. This layout was about the message, not the design - actually hand cut that Arrow Symbol - and used my Wishblade to cut the rest of the title. Cameron moved up to Webelo, so I used the rest of the paper to do a layout of him getting his new neckerchief. He is well on his way to earning the Arrow of Light for next year! For this layout I used Thickers for the title and Making Memories Mini Alphas (boy, I love those little things!). I crack up with the Webelos - I always want to say "Webelos Wobble but they don't fall down". Does anyone remember those toys, or am I showing my age?

Two Sunny Days in a Row after This Storm!!!

2009-06-28T20:04:00.007-04:00

Wow! What a beautiful weekend! It's been a long time since we saw this much sun here! Was in PA for a few days - sunny and HOT there...drove into a wicked storm on the way home late Friday afternoon.Jackie and I were on the Verrazano Bridge , stuck in traffic and watched the two storms converge - scarily awesome! Here's a picture I took out the car window from the Belt Parkway by Sheepshead Bay and of the one storm merging with the other. Try as I might, I could not get any lightning photos. The rain came down in buckets and the lightning crackled from one side of the island to the other - north to south then south to north - very weird.
Took us forever to get home, but it started to clear up right at sunset. Red Sky at night, sailor's delight :)
and Saturday was just gorgeous! Worked on a few layouts too, will get them posted shortly. Wishing you a beautiful week.

Crazy Days!

2009-06-20T22:18:00.004-04:00

Holy crow - my last day of work was June 5th----I have been off for more than 2 weeks and have been running around like a crazy person IN THE RAIN because it has rained all but 2 days in June so far (actually, it is teeming as I type this). It's been a crazy two weeks - I will not bore you with the details, but a bunch of health related stuff with my daughters and grandkids which made this mom/grandma a wreck! Add to that the typical end of school festivities and goings on - Cub Scouts, Dance Recitals, Concerts, Teas, Baseball and Soccer, Graduations...etc. And being the good grandma I try to be, I get to every last event when I am not working, so I am driving from one end of Long Island to the other IN THE POURING RAIN trying to attend all these functions. Suffice to say that I have a TON of pictures and will be doing some scrapping when things calm down. I was able to get some ACBailey Design Team stuff done this afternoon, which I will be posting on the 1st.
Tommorrow is Summer Solstice - the longest day of the year...wouldn't it be nice if the sun stayed out until it actually was supposed to get dark??? One can only wish if you live in the Northeast.....
Until I can get some decent layouts on here, I will leave you with a photo of my grandson Colson getting a citation from out State Senator.
Colson was awarded "The Arrow of Light" in Cub Scouts - (which is like Eagle Scout in Boy Scouts). He was such a "little man" and so cool and confident, took his oaths and spoke without any nervousness - I was so proud of him - and I promised him I wouldn't cry and although my eyes welled up, I did really well till the very end, and then I felt this huge tear spill over and run down my face. Oh well, it wasn't the first time I shed a tear of pride and it won't be the last :)

2009-06-10T17:24:00.003-04:00

I just got tagged (by Emma) with this so I am passing it on. If your name is below, please follow the rules.

Here are the rules:
1. Make a list of what you want for your Birthday.
2. The list should be 10 items
3. Include the image of the award on your post
4. Give it to ten friends.

My birthday was in March, so I guess this could be printed out and saved ;)
Ten things that I would love for my Birthday:
1. A charm for my Pandora Bracelet
2. Lunch or dinner out with all 3 daughters at the same time
3. Tickets to the next Josh Groban concert (whenever that will be)
4. A Cleaning Lady once a month
5. A Major Scraproom Re-Organization
6. To finally get to a CKC
7. Monthly pedicures
8. A Really Good Haircut and Color
9. A Canon Digital Rebel Xti
10. A day trip to Montauk Point

who to tag next? Gail, Leah, Cheri, Rhonda, Hayley, Lynn, Erica, Kathy M, Tammy C, Karen H

All Partied Out!!

2009-06-07T15:36:00.007-04:00

What a great day yesterday - the rain stopped and the sun came out and it was glorious! Cara had Brennan's First Birthday Party (his real birthday was May 9th) and what a great party it was! Pirate and Ocean themed decorations - treasure chests and pirate's bootie and a bouncy castle. Wonderful food, good company - Brennan was such a cutie pie - too bad he'll only remember from the pictures - there were TONS of little kids - and half the moms there were pregnant - and fortunately a lot of Nurses, just in case. Layouts to follow, but check out this cake!! A very talented baker replicated a paper plate that had this design on it. It was good too - fresh strawberries in the filling.

ACBailey June Goodies Kit of the Month

2009-06-01T09:08:00.004-04:00

I was so lucky to get to work with this month's beautiful kit - the flip sides of these papers are beautiful too - it was hard to decide which to use!! Keeping with the Red, White and Blue of Memorial Day I created this layout of my great niece Lexie. How perfect, that the photo I took of her on Memorial Day showed the star necklace she was wearing and my Jenni Bowlin bingo card said STAR! I traced a big star on the red and white polka dot paper and cut it out -placed that on the Bazzill cardstock, used the flip side of the paper I cut the star from to layer, ruffled a small piece of blue patterned paper, stapled that and then I slid the bingo card in, finished off with some flowers and journaled around the star using my all time Favorite White Signo Pen. I am starting to think that I am addicted to using Distress Crackle paint on all my chipboard alphas - a great way to always have the right color to go with the layout !

Remember to Thank a Veteran Today

2009-05-25T14:46:00.004-04:00

We are so lucky to live in the United States- even in the worst of times, I would rather be here than anywhere else in the world. I found this photo online of Pinelawn National Cemetery - the boy scouts put flags on every grave. So thanks to all the Veterans whose sacrifices have kept us free.

A 3 Day Weekend!!!!

2009-05-24T07:33:00.002-04:00

I just love Memorial Day weekend! I love a 3 day-er any time but this one kicks off the summer for me, signals that work is nearly through and I will be getting some well-deserved free time. The Air Show at Jone's Beach is this weekend and I always go with Jami and the boys - it's like the annual weekend kick off. Shane, who is 5 and a half now, has gone from screaming blue murder when he sees the paratroopers (thinking that it was the Green Goblin with Pumpkin Bombs, going to kill us all!) to spotting them in the sky and saying that's what he wants to do when he is grown up - either that or fly one of the jets! We were truly blessed with the weather, which was supposed to be overcast and rainy - a last minute wind shift and it was sunny and gorgeous, but very cool and windy as heck. I have the sunburn to prove it. The ocean was so cold that your feet cramped the minute they touched the water - even Aidan only jumped in and out for a minute - the sea was so rough because of the wind and I bet it was 45 degrees at most!

Along with others, the Thunderbirds performed (they alternate with the Blue Angels) and they were incredible but I think that the Canadian Snow Birds stole the show this year. It's really good knowing we have such wonderful allies to the north. I am off to church and then to a BBQ, but I'll leave you with this very cool photo.

Some Layouts with the ACBailey May Kit of the Month

2009-05-19T18:51:00.014-04:00

This kit was so pretty - and not the usual paper style for me, so I really had some fun with it. I love cutting the designs from papers and using the cutouts as embellishments. This first layout is a picture of Dana and Ken coming off the altar at their wedding. It was in a frame, which was knocked over and the glass broke...it's tough to scrap professional photos and especially an 8x10, but this Marks paper was a perfect combination of elegance and style. I cut the paper an used it as a mat and embellied cut outs around it in the place where the photo was a bit too small. Some Stickles to glitz it up a bit and voila`- perfect!

I was really getting into cutting and the colors of the paper went perfectly with some photos Jami took of me and some of the grands on my birthday last year. I rarely scrap photos of me, although I have been trying to do so more often - I am usually the one behind the camera. Because these papers are so rich and beautifully printed, it was easy to just use cut out work for the main focus - pop on some photos add some additional cut out embellies and then a Thickers title - a quick layout that look like to took hours to do.
The June Kit of the Month will be released on the first - the only hint I can give you is to think "the beginning of the summer" and that it will be perfect for the BBQ and parade photos that you'll be taking the next few weeks! You can sneak a peek of it on the ACBailey estore :)

Ahhhhh Finally Friday!!

2009-05-15T18:57:00.011-04:00

What a crazy two weeks - Cameron turned nine and Brennan turned one, Mother's Day, Graduation dinners, doctor's appointments ! Classes ending, finals to give and grade, papers to collect and grade, grades to be calculated (love Excel!!) and then submitted. But whew - it's all done. Work will slow down until I need to do the stat report for the entire student body in our program - about 90 kids. I am so used to doing it, I have everything ready to go and I just need to plug in the 360 individual grades - cake :)

I did accomplish a bit of scrapbooking though - I made a set of cards for a card swap over at AC Bailey. I used October Afternoon papers - I just love their stuff!This card is so versatile and can be adapted for any holiday or occasion. It's also a great design to use for masculine cards because the embellishment can be changed to suit whatever you need. Actually sold a set of cards as well - I never think about selling my cards, but someone requested a set and it was fun to sit and relax doing them.
I am hoping you had a great Mother's Day. It sure was a lovely day. I participated in a 1K "run" to raise money for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society. Actually, Cailyn and Cameron ran - I walked fast. And Ken was impressed at the speed that I actually did walk - Thank goodness for long legs!! I was glad to see this sign too, just in case!! Although 1 K is not all as far as it sounds.
Colson, Dana and Ken actually ran in the 5K, with Ken racing off to finish the 5K after he ran the 1 K - and Colson beat his parents coming in 11th in his division of 18 years and younger - not bad for a 10 year old!! By the time I got to the finish line with the camera, it looked like Dana was pulling Ken across - his first run after knee surgery - and he said he was hurting. Layouts to follow. We tried to go have breakfast together for Mother's Day, but every place was packed with people doing the same.

And the Blog Hop Winner is.....................................

2009-05-04T13:33:00.001-04:00

Hayley!!!!
Congratulations and thanks for playing - please email me your address so Erica can send out your prize....and tell your friends!!

AC Bailey National Scrapbooking Day Blog Hop Stop

2009-05-02T01:00:00.001-04:00

Just feast your eyes on the ACBailey Goodies Kit of the Month for May and Welcome to AC Bailey's FIRST ever blog hop! Do we have a treat for YOU! This is an awesome opportunity for you to meet all the AC Bailey Design Team members, learn lots of (hopefully) new ideas and techniques, gain some inspiration and maybe even win some prizes along the way! Here is how this works, if you are already on my site via a link you already know this, but for those of you popping in here mid-stream, let me explain.
The FIRST post or START to this Blog Hop is on the AC Bailey blog . There you will find the instructions, along with all the "fine print" details. Starting with that post, proceed to the next DT member's blog whose link will be at the end of the post. Be sure to leave a comment on each blog you visit, because at every site there will be a random name drawn from all who post and one lucky gal on EACH blog will win a SUPER prize. Once you have visited the designer's blog , click on the link in her post to take you to the next designer and so on and so on. Then, when you are finished visiting all the blogs, maybe learning a new technique or two, and you want to win even more prizes, create a layout or project using three or more of the ideas you saw demo'd on the blogs and post that layout in the gallery in the NSD layout folder (under Scrap Stimulus Contest) section and then post how much fun you had and a link to your layout on the special NSD thread in the Scrap Stimulus Contest section of the forum! We will then draw one lucky winner form all those posting qualifying layouts and THAT lucky "rabbit" will win that gorgeous May AC Bailey Goodies KOTM, which has Marks Paper, Chatterbox, Prima Butterflies and Flower, and Maya Road ribbons - plus more !! It COULD be you, all you need to do is PLAY! It is a lot easier than this sound, try it! You will enjoy it and don't worry- we will have instructions for you all the way through this and we will be available off and on all weekend on the forum so if you get stuck yell out and we can help you-easy and FUN - and PRIZES! What more could you ask for??? Layouts and project needs to be uploaded to the AC Bailey site by midnight May 3rd.

First, a bit about me.. My name is Dee and I have been a member of the Design Team since September of 2008. I live on beautiful Long Island, in New York. In "real life" I am a counselor and college professor, but the job I love most is being on the Design Team. It's wonderful being a included in such a fun and talented bunch of ladies. I have been a member of the AC Bailey forum since June of 2007 and I became a Consultant in August 2008, leaving a previous company because AC Bailey was so fantastic I had to be part of it. I love the forum - it is chock full of wonderful ideas, support, great gals and fun without the drama of many scrapbooking forums out there. The products that are selected for the e-store are the latest and greatest and every first of the month is FREE shipping day - just doesn't get better than that! Since I love to alter, I adore the Kaiser products although there has probably never been a paper line that I didn't love, love BoBunny...oh! and I love Stickles....and Prima flowers....I could go on and on!

I recently got into Ranger Distress paints - at first because I always need to have all the new stuff, but then because I just loved using it. Using paint is a great way to frame a photo , tone down a busy background paper, and custom color your chipboard alphas, especially if you have different colors. I am showing you two layouts because after I put one together, thinking I could kill two birds with one stone, it seemed to be overkill with Distressed Alphas alongside the Distress Paint, so I pulled the photos off and created another using the same design but then, I hated to waste that yummy October Afternoon paper, so I improvised and created another layout changing the design just enough :). One of the very cool things with the Distress Paint is that it crackles when it dries leaving a really nice dimensional distressed crackled finish. On the first layout, "Aunt J" I painted the chipboard with pink and when dry I painted them again with yellow - after the paint crackled, you could see the pink though the cracks. The thicker you apply the paint, the more cracks you will get! A wonderful way to add dimension to your layouts! This is a layout of my daughter Jami with her nieces and nephews.....I used Basic Grey Urban Prairie papers and die cuts, along with some matching chipboard and undressed alphas. I blinged up the butterflies with Stickles and also used the Fiskars Threading Water punch to create a scalloped edge on one of the papers. On the second layout, I used the Distress Crackle Paint as a frame - this is a great way to be able to use patterned paper as a background and give the page dimension too. On the second layout I used paint as part of the background color - this can give your page some dimension and interest and is a great way to be able to use a really patterned paper for your background without losing your photo. Sometimes paint can buckle your paper a bit, but all you need to do is mist the back of the paper with plain water and cover with a heavy object and let it dry - paper will come out smooth as the day you bought it. I also used ink over this paint when it dried to really accentuate the cracks. You can use ink that is the same color as the paint or can used a coordinating color and change the look completely!
This second layout, Tri Swim is a photo of another one of my daughters coming out of the water after doing the swim leg of a
Triathlon. This layout didn't come out too badly considering I basically tore it to pieces and salvaged it and by adding the circle and a vertical photo, you hardly even know it is virtually the same design!
I'm hoping that you'll take some time and try using some Distress Paints when you design your next layout - it's alot of fun and easy to do and very rewarding as you watch the paint dry and crackle before your eyes! Thanks for visiting my blog. I hope you enjoyed learning a bit about Distress Paint and will stop by often. I'd love for you to hop on over to my friend Connie's blog and see what she's got going on over there. Don't forget to post a comment here first so I know you were here and you'll be eligible for the drawing.
Just click the link http://craftygoodies.blogspot.com/
Happy National Scrapbooking Day!!

It's Almost Time!!!!!

2009-04-30T20:03:00.001-04:00

National Scrapbooking Day is Saturday...the AC Bailey Design Team has a little something planned......just a hint, on Saturday morning click onto the AC Bailey blog and follow the instructions...you won't be sorry :)

Opening Days....

2009-04-26T07:45:00.007-04:00

There's a contest going on over at ACBailey and each Design Team Member is responsible for creating a challenge. Our theme is "Scrapping Stimulus Package" and I challenged scrappers to take an old layout and using the same design create a new one using some of the modern techniques we use today as scrappers. I found an old LO of Colson's Opening Day in 2004...please don't laugh :).....Do you have any idea how tough it is to post bad LOs?? The only thing I can say in my defense is that I've come a long way......Can you pick out the things that I challenged the scrappers to use?
The second LO is of Aidan's Opening Day last week.....a big difference. (Shane marched in the parade too, but I missed the little bug as he passed by, so I will need to get some photos from Jami). Get over to ACBailey and check out the challenges - there's prizes too!! Just a reminder that Free Shipping First is on Friday (How's that for some alliteration?) Lots of super new stuff in the e-store - check it out.

A Layout with the AC Bailey April Kit of the Month

2009-04-15T18:31:00.005-04:00

I had hoped to put a few Easter photos on here but I did not get one good photo! The little ones were not cooperating at all!! So, the next best thing was scrapping with the beautiful April KOTM from AC Bailey! This is Delaney. She is three years old and "becomes" whatever character she is dressed as. She loves the Doodlebops and went to a concert - which unfortunately got rained out. Her mom took her to another one - three states away! Here she is as DeeDee Doodlebop!
There is a contest going on over at AC Bailey - with all this talk of the government Stimulus plans and packages, we thought it would be fun to host a contest using that as a theme. It began today and will run to May 15th, with a special National Scrapbooking Day program as well. Each Design Team member has a challenge to get your scrapping mojo flowing! If you are not already a member of the AC Bailey forum...come join the fun!

Happy Palm Sunday !!

2009-04-05T11:59:00.006-04:00

The Palm Sunday Gospel always makes me cry and I think the person sitting next to me must have thought I was crazy...I know it is a story with a happy ending for us, but still the betrayal and humility shown rocks me to the core every year.

Did a bit of scrappin' a few nights ago and made some Easter cards. I NEVER made my own cards until my friend Tam got me started - actually I think she shamed me into it!! I still struggle with making cards because I think in 12x12 but I had a template for these cute little Easter Dresses! These are wonderful cards for little girls (and big girls too) and I can't wait to get an invitation for a Communion Party or Christening because this will be the card I will use.

I also made a few other cards to send to the boys as I know they would think the dresses were pretty lame......

3 Bugs -some new Layouts

2009-04-03T08:40:00.009-04:00

I received some 3Bugs products to work with from ACBailey - the 3 Bugs paper line is just adorable. With 5 grandsons I do alot of boy layouts but I loved this combination of blues, greens and yellows along with the cocoa brown. The double sided papers make the line easily adaptable - I especially loved the soft plaid and the polka dots - and the little frogs, snails and turtles make perfect accents for any page. I have been really lax about making layouts featuring Brennan - guess that's what happens when you are the last born :( but he has the sweetest little face you've ever seen - and he'll be a year old next month! I need to get moving with some layouts for him and this one is a good start.

I've had this picture of Aidan with his the first fish he ever caught for a few years just waiting for the right paper to come along...and it did. The 3 Bugs was perfect for this layout and because there is a sheet of blocks with letters and words, as soon as I saw "F for Fish" I knew the photo I would use. I tried something new on this layout - I got some bracelet twine and tied knots in it to look like rope - I really like the effect - I was still able to use my "ribbon mentality" but adapted it for a little boy layout!I used Kraft paper for the background instead of Cardstock and inked the edges to distress it a bit. I wish you could see the look on Aidan's face better - it's priceless!

No Foolin' this Kit is Gorgeous!!

2009-04-01T19:17:00.003-04:00

April! - what happened to March??
I had all these great plans to bang out a few layouts with the AC Bailey April Kit of the Month- I even took some photos of the beautiful clumps of purple crocus that has bloomed in my front flower bed! Got the photo printed and life turned upside down again...I promise a LO in a few days but for now, feast your eyes on this delightful kit. Erica is a genius putting these together - a real talent. They are limited, so grab one while you can!You won't be sorry!

Is it only Wednesday???

2009-03-25T18:05:00.005-04:00

Gee this week is a killer! I am so busy at work, I don't know if I am coming or going. For some reason the traffic on the way home has been horrible the last few days too - a LOT of police cars stopping people - which automatically gets me to thinking "Terrorist Attack". Ever since the horrific 9/11 attack and the feeling of isolation and vulnerability that was felt by those living on Long Island, I have never really felt carefree about anything.

And I have Spring Fever, but it is COLD here, the poor little robins are all puffed up trying to keep warm...and I see all the daffodils starting to peek up from the soil and the purple crocus (or is it croci??) in the front flower bed of is almost blooming. To convince myself into thinking that Spring is really here, I have been buying bunches of Daffodils every week in the grocery store. Actually I alternate with Tulips. For those of you that know me - yellow is probably one of my least favorites colors, just barely ahead of red and the all- hated orange, but Daffs and Sunflowers are the exception. I will leave you with a photo of the Daffs I had last week - they were gorgeous - huge, bright yellow bloom that lasted all week - best $3 I've spent in a long time.

Lazy, Crazy Days...

2009-03-20T19:48:00.007-04:00

What a crazy day! I took yesterday and today off because it is Spring Break and there are no students at the University, and I could use a lazy day or two. Yesterday I ran all over with my friend Jackie and did a bit of shopping. Today I have been playing around with my photos trying to get them organized and the ones I am not scrapping into sleeves. I got some awesome mail today....two boxes - one from ACBailey with my design team stuff and the April Kit of the Month. OMG! that kit is gorgeous! I wish I could show it to you, but my advice would be to make sure that you order it on April 1st when it's released. You will not be disappointed, I promise.

The second box was a birthday gift from my friend Gail....I was nearly screaming with delight when I saw the newest Vera Bradley Purple Passion bag and a matching wallet slide out of that box. I am incredibly blessed with the most wonderful friends- good, kind, funny, strong supportive women who have all impacted my life in such a positive way. This arrived on a day that was not going so well and it was like a burst of sunshine....so again Thanks, Gail - I treasure our friendship too :) This will be a layout in the making...

Right now, I am waiting for my daughter to come over so I can help her put together a huge poster for her Fund Raiser for the Lymphoma & Leukemia Society . Tomorrow she has arranged a "Pub Crawl" through the village of Babylon, which has a bunch of little restaurants and pubs and they are all providing munchies and specials. About five or six establishments are participating, along with about 100 people!!! My Cosmo limit is two...so I really need to be careful or Crawl will be the operative word of the day - Dana is hoping to raise a few thousand dollars. Check back tomorrow..... ;)

Happy St. Patrick's Day !! Some Ramblings....

2009-03-17T10:53:00.006-04:00

I love all things Irish...starting with my name, Deirdre, which is about as Irish as a name can be. My mother told me that I was named after an Irish princess who had dark hair and a tragic love life - except for the princess part, that sounds about right :)
It was funny how when I was in Ireland that not one person had trouble saying Deirdre like they do over here!! I loved Ireland - it is a beautiful and magical place steeped in history, legends and wonderfully kind people.
All of my grandkids have very Irish names - Colson, Cameron, Cailyn, Aidan, Shane, Delaney and Brennan....aren't they nice??

I live an hour from New York City if I catch an express train - yet, I have never been to the Parade. I love the bag pipes and all that plaid.....Today would have been a great day too, although it's cold, the sun is shining brightly.

I baked 8 loaves of Irish Soda Bread last night....it was really yummy while it was warm. I took one to work and will pass a few around to my daughters and friends and hopefully have one left over to pop in the freezer for another day. Since it is Tuesday and on Tuesday I usually grab dinner with my friend Jackie, I invited her over for a Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner. We'll celebrate the day with a Green Apple Martini instead of our usual Pomegranate one.

I'll need to start looking around for another blog background, now that St. Pat's will be over....wishing you a wonderful day today filled with a bit of luck and love!

Getting Ready to Bake

2009-03-15T16:21:00.004-04:00

I really try to avoid cooking at all costs. It is just not fun for me. (Don't get me wrong, I DO cook, because trust me, I do not look like I am starving to death). I do enjoy cooking for Christmas Eve though and several other occasions during the year - mostly holidays (except Thanksgiving), any time is snows and for Saint Patrick's Day. I love Irish Soda Bread. There are so many recipes out there, but I started making this one last year. I got the recipe from my sister, who actually likes to cook and is quite good at it (see Thanksgiving). She told me while I was out getting in trouble as a kid, she was learning how to cook. Anyway, I am posting this today, just in case you want to whip up a batch for Tuesday. This freezes really well, so as long as you're messing up the kitchen , make 2 batches! Click on the recipe card to read the directions.
The recipe card was a challenge over at AC Bailey last year - love that Maya Rd Celtic Chipboad!

Feeling a Bit Sad - and some Deja Vu

2009-03-10T12:07:00.003-04:00

I got news last night that Xyron closed I Remember When, their direct sales scrapbooking company. When I first started my scrap business I started out with Leaving Prints, and after a while I started seeing signs that the company was in trouble. I researched and found IRW and was an instructor with them for more than 2 years, until I started seeing those same signs of a company in trouble - old product, issues with deliveries of new product and the like. I left there and have been with AC Bailey ever since. My daughter Cara posted on Facebook that I had a 6th sense about these things, but it makes me sad to see another scrapbooking company go under....I thought that being backed by a big company like Xyron would have protected them, but I guess not. I feel sad for the friends I made over at IRW and the shock and that empty high and dry feeling that occurs when stuff like this happens. Almost like a sucker punch you didn't see coming.....

In this industry, in order to be a success you need to have the latest and greatest product all the time. If a customer has seen it twice it's OLD stuff already. That seems to be one the secrets to a running successful scrapbooking business no matter what scale - a big company or just a little side business...that and great customer service.

Spring Ahead!!!!

2009-03-07T15:28:00.000-05:00

Don't forget to push those clocks ahead an hour tonight! Daylight Savings Time is starting a month early, which is ok by me! I love the extra daylight - but it takes me a week to readjust my internal clock - I will be waking up at 4:20am for a few days.

A Walk Through Kensington Gardens

2009-03-05T06:07:00.003-05:00

This was a pretty paper set in my Design Team products from ACBailey. It's called Kensington Gardens and it's by Fiskars, which is more known, I think, for it's cutting tools and punches. I did a few layouts and with the leftovers made this mini album. The cool thing about this album was that all the pages were different sizes. The colors reminded me of Spring and Summer - cool greens, with some pinks and a bit of navy. I used a Maya Road Calendar Turn on the front cover - a great way to date your work!

SNOW DAY !!!!

2009-03-02T12:35:00.004-05:00

I can look forward to the spring now....I got my Snow Day. The University alert system contacted my cell at 10 pm last night to let me know the University would be closed. That's the first time the University closed more than 2 hours before classes were scheduled to begin - and I have worked there 15 years. I think every school district on Long Island was closed last night, so no one set alarms for this morning! Shoveled the driveway about 8:30 this morning....there was 13 inches of snow. It's still snowing :)

March comes in like a Lion!!!

2009-03-01T20:26:00.002-05:00

I have waited all winter for a major snowstorm!! I love snow and I thought, that as February came to a close I would have to wait til next year. Typical of Long Island weather --- a Nor'easter is blowing up the coast and we are to get anywhere from 8 to 14 inches of the white stuff!! I am in my glory! I can't wait to get outside to take some photos either . I have been really lacking in the Snow/Winter layouts. I certainly hope that the forecast is not wrong, as I piddled around today and really muddled through chores expecting to have a Snow Day tomorrow......will be back in the morning with a report.

If you are in the mood for some fun and some scrapping, ACBailey has a Pot O' Gold Scavenger Hunt going on that is going to be tons of fun! Click on the link on your right and it will take you to the ACBailey site.

Finishing February

2009-02-27T13:50:00.002-05:00

Wow! February came and went quickly - I guess as quickly as the shortest month of the year goes. I was hoping for a major snowstorm - a day or two off from work. Although February was snowy - it was just snowy enough to be annoying, with long traffic delays and driveway shoveling, because after it snowed, it rained and then the temperature would drop to single digits and freeze everything into a solid block of ice - so there I was out in freezing rain shoveling a driveway with 4 or 5 inches of "SLURPEE" snow because if I didn't, the next morning my driveway would be like a skating rink!! But that's February on Long Island - we can have bitter cold and wind...and two days later it's 50 degrees!

I am still working on this blog. I want to add some photos and stuff of the scrappy work I have been doing. It's fun being on a Design Team, but challenging, because you never know what products you are going to get in the mail to work with. I must say though with ACBailey, I have never been disappointed!

I love ending a month and starting a new one - On the first of every month ACBailey has free shipping, so I always have an order sitting in the cart waiting to go. That free shipping applies to customers as well, so if you need to do some shopping, click the ACBailey link on the right. The Winter CHA stuff is beginning to arrive! We just got some very cool new Basic Grey and some adorable 3 Bugs stuff......

Shrove Tuesday

2009-02-24T10:16:00.002-05:00

One more day until Lent begins....the reason I know this is that my birthday always falls during Lent and I am always afraid to give up cake because I would have no brithday cake at all!! I usually try to give up smoking, and always fail. Now that I stopped smoking, I was thinking this morning while driving to work, what I could conceivably give up without caving in.....so I am thinking Chocolate Candy - that way I can still have ice cream or a Chocolate martini and some Jelly Bellies and still be ok. Maybe I'll throw Chips in too - so that's it - for Lent I will offer up Chips and Chocolate Candy....hmmm maybe I will lose an ounce or too as well. I have some candy left over from Valentine's Day - some Ghiardelli's with caramel centers and one Lindt truffle - there are too many Ghiardelli's to eat all at once, so I will need to put those away - but I will pop the truffle in my mouth as soon as I get home -

One of these days I would love to go to New Orleans to celebrate Mardi Gras - it sure looks like fun and a real feeding frenzy of good food.

Wishing you a Happy Fat Tuesday!!

Welcome!!

2009-02-20T13:46:00.002-05:00

Almost everyone I know has a blog! I don't know why I have put it off starting one for this long. I am a good writer and I have an interesting life and lots of funny stories to share. I am creative and do alot of scrapbooking and altered art in what little spare time I have. I am a consultant with ACBailey, which is a wonderful scrapbooking direct sales company that has a great community forum. ACBailey has an awesome Design team, of which I am part and we sponsor many fun things on the forum and have great examples of how to use the latest and greatest scrapbooking products. I hope, that over the next few weeks, as I learn this "blogging mindset" and all the things associated with it you will check back and see what's happening in my corner of the universe.