Scrapper Mom

A Birthday Celebration at APIT

2010-08-20T08:21:00.000-04:00

This week over at APIT, we're celebrating! There are tons of challenges, prizes, a nice bonus SALE, and all sorts of fun stuff :) Here is a layout I created (for my best friend, Leslie with her daughter Kaelyn), head over to the site to see the full challenge details.

3 Years ago today...

2010-08-17T22:33:00.000-04:00

I became a mother. Before that day, I really didn't even know what the word meant. I only thought I did. After a tumultuous (to say the least) pregnancy, labor, and delivery, I finally got to meet my 9 lb baby boy. I was so drugged up for the cesarean that there aren't many things I remember about the delivery, but I remember the doctor saying "This baby's gotta be 10 pounds!" when she first delivered him.

It has been such an amazing experience to watch him grow from that helpless baby boy into the fiercely independent, always climbing and going 3 year old that he is today. Every day he does things that just amaze me and even though I first thought Children weren't in my future, I can't imagine being anything other than his mama now (and Logan's, of course!).

Happy Birthday, Caeden!!!

When MORE is LESS...

2010-08-13T10:41:00.000-04:00

There it is. One of the biggest secrets to the DrugStore Game. Every so often, I have someone who sees my occasional deal brags on facebook and then says something like "Coupons don't work for me because even with a coupon, the generic is still cheaper." And, in most cases, I totally agree with that. Here are a couple of general tips:

1. Shop Sales/Promotions. If you go to the store and use your coupon on a regular price item, then yes it will probably still be at or above the price of the store brand. But, if you shop during a sale when the item is at rock-bottom price already, AND with a promotion (extra $$ off, rewards on your receipt--+UP, Extra Bucks, Catalinas, etc.) then you'll be getting a great deal. For example, Rite Aid offers +UP rewards on receipts, and they also have a super-easy (electronic!) rebate program. Add all those together with sales and coupons and you can get things for free or super cheap!

2. MORE is [sometimes] LESS. Rite Aid, CVS, Kroger, and other stores often have coupons for dollars off if you spend a certain amount (like save $5 when you spend $25). For most people, these are a trap to get you to spend more money than you otherwise would have. To the extreme couponer, this is FREE money! But, you have to think outside the box.

Here is an example. Rite Aid this week has Ziploc bags on sale for B1G1 Free! The sizes included are priced at $2.99. If I bought 4 packages, it would have looked like this:

4 pkg Ziploc $5.98
-$1.00/2 coupon
-$3.00 +UP rewards from last week
Total: $2.34 after taxes.

$2.34 out of pocket is a great deal for 4 packages of ziploc bags! BUT, if you do a little extra figuring, it can get even crazier! Here is what I did:

4 Dry Idea Deoderant (B1G1 FREE sale): $8.58
Schick Hydro Razor $5.99
6 pkg Ziploc $8.97
Trial Size Tugaboo Diapers $.89
Total: $25.90 after taxes

Coupons:
-$5/25 coupon from Video Values
-$8.58 B1G1 FREE Dry Idea coupons (when paired with B1G1 sale, they are both free!)
-$3 (3) $1/2 ziploc coupons
-$5.00 Schick Hydro coupon from this week's paper
-$3 +UP rewards from last week
_____
Total after coupons and taxes: $1.02.

Yes, I paid $1.02 for ALL that stuff at Rite Aid. I paid LESS by getting MORE stuff! I'm not going to say it's easy because sometimes it's a little tedious to plan out, but it IS possible and there are "Deals" sites and blogs to help you out. It's certainly not for everyone, but if you're trying to stretch a really tight budget, it's a great thing.

More APIT--Basic Grey Cappella

2010-08-02T08:57:00.000-04:00

Okay, there is a lesson to be learned from today's post. Sometimes, in scrapbooking, it's okay to NOT follow your gut. When I first found out that I would be designing with Basic Grey's Cappella line, I was less than thrilled. In fact, I was dreading it. With 2 baby/toddler boys being the center of my scrapbooking, I couldn't imagine what I would do with elegant, sophisticated wedding papers. But, I looked through my pictures and ended up with a layout that is one of my personal faves :)

I wish I had taken a close up of my handmade scrunchy flower embelly for you, but alas, I didn't.

And, as my "extra" item for that kit, I did a second 2-page layout, that I was ridiculously excited about, and I hope it will show you how versatile these papers are--the colors were perfect for this outdoors layout The pale blue made for some great clouds, the green is a nice muted tree top, and the brown made a nice trunk :) And, even though it's super simple, this is again one of my new favorite layouts.

So, sometimes in Scrapbooking, it's better to go against your gut! Even if something doesn't really seem to be your style, give it another chance...you might be surprised at what you can come up with and end up with some great projects :)

July Kits at APIT

2010-07-01T08:13:00.000-04:00

It's a new month for APIT kits :) As always, it's a 3-in-1 kind of kit, so I will stretch out my projects over a few days. This month is full of some Basic Grey yummy. I'll start off with the Max & Whiskers kit:

Here is my 2-page layout using ONLY items from the kit. I cut the title letters out by hand.

Here is another layout. I added cardstock for the background, alpha stickers for the title, and a little bit of trim.

And, here are a couple of cards. On the first one I added ink and cardstock, on the second one I only added ink:

And, here is a project I made for Caeden's room. I used a train shaped mini-album as a template, but other than that, this was made entirely with paper from the kit.

So, you can see that there is a lot to do from this kit. Even after all this, I still have enough papers left for 1-2 more cards! It was a great kit to work with, as we have all come to expect from both Basic Grey and from Amy at APIT who puts these kits together.

Tasty Tuesday--Chocolate Torte with Strawberry Cheeseball Filling!

2010-06-29T08:31:00.001-04:00

I'm going to try to get back into regularly posting food/recipes on my blog so I decided to participate in a weekly blog hop, Tasty Tuesday.

My first chocolate torte! I made this a few weeks ago. Not exactly a "quick and easy" kind of dessert because there are lots of weird little steps beyond the usual mix-things-together but the reward was SOOO worth it!

I used some Tastefully Simple Sweet Strawberry Cheeseball as my filling and it was DELICIOUS!

For the torte, I used the Hershey's Viennese Chocolate Torte recipe. Instead of using the suggested glaze, I used a thinned down version of Wilton Buttercream Icing. I'm addicted to that stuff, it's my go-to recipe for buttercream icing. I'm sure the glaze probably would have a darker, richer taste, but I thought the buttercream was perfect for this cake.

And, rather than use the hershey's recipe for the filling, I used my Sweet Strawberry Cheeseball, which you can purchase at my Tastefully Simple site, www.tastefullysimple.com/web/cbrothers

The result was a really rich, decadent dessert that our whole family loved.

FINALLY! Some scrapbooking :)

2010-06-25T06:30:00.000-04:00

I got some happy mail at my house this week--my new kit from A Page in Time Scrapbooks! Yay :) I haven't been scrapbooking at all lately, so it's nice to have this kit to kind of force me back in the scrapping mood.

While I'm working with these GREAT kits, I thought I'd share some projects from the last kit I designed with...I guess it would have been May.

I love these pictures of Caeden. Climbing a tree and he was just barely 2 years old. He looks so big in these pictures though.

And here is a father's day card that I made for Chad to give to his dad. I made it for him a month ago and gave it to him. Then, the week of Father's Day, I reminded him about it. He still didn't get around to writing a message in it and giving it to his dad! lol...oh well.

Caeden's First Fish!

2010-06-24T08:11:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, we took Caeden fishing for the first time. He was BEYOND excited to get to use his very own fishing pole and go fishing with daddy. He did really well. Chad would hook it for him and then Caeden would reel it in on his own. He had such a great time. Here are some pics of him and daddy (and his very first fish).

Daddy helping him cast. Caeden is concentrating really hard.

"Smile, Caeden" He couldn't be bothered by mom and the camera to actually look away from the water. lol.

Here is the first fish of several :) And, he is officially better at fishing than his mama, who only ever catches seaweed! lol.

I {heart} Rite Aid!

2010-06-23T08:39:00.000-04:00

My blog has been very much neglected lately, but I'm still hoping to get back into a regular blogging schedule. For today, I have to share my awesome week at Rite Aid!!!

I got all this stuff:

Regular Rite Aid Price: $67.75

My price after sales and coupons: $2.32

Remaining +UP Rewards: $3.00

Rebates Coming To Me: $11.99

Crazy, huh?!?

Here is what I did:

Transaction 1:

20 ct. Motrin PM $3.00

-$3.00 coupon (from 4/18 insert)

=$.18 (tax only)

(Repeat this transaction a second time)

Transaction 2:

Schick Hydro $6.99 (raincheck price)

Gillette Fusion $9.99

2 Nivea Mens Body Wash $7.98

Finish Quantumatic $5.50

Motrin PM $3.00

2 Kelloggs $3.98

Total: $37.44

- $5/$25 coupon from Rite Aid Video Values

-$4 Schick Hydro Coupon

-$1 RA Video Values Schick Hydro coupon

-$4 Gillette Fusion coupon

-(2) $3 Nivea Mens Body Wash Coupons

-$4 Finish Quantumatic RA Video Values Coupon

-$3 Finish Quantumatic printable coupon

-$3 Motrin PM coupon (from 4/18 insert)

-$1/2 Kelloggs coupon

-(2) $3 +UP Rewards

____

.44 (+Tax)

You will end up with $3 +UP rewards from the last Motrin, plus a $5 SCR from the Gillette Fusion Razor and a $6.99 rebate from the mail-in-rebate from Schick, if you print off the form.

Not too shabby!

Relay For Life.

2010-06-10T09:25:00.001-04:00

My family has always been active in the Relay for Life, which is coming up in our county tomorrow night. I know there are testimonials everywhere but I wanted to share the thoughts of my dear aunt Linda (who I love very much!) about the relay...she shared this on her facebook page today:

"i just want to tell everyone to come out for relay for life..i also want to thank everyone for doing so.it has been 6 years cancer free for breast cancer, and 2 yrs for skin cancer.....i use to go to relay for life,,walk the track.. not really thinking why i was doing it for.then i got breast cancer..then when i went to relay for life. i thought these people are doing it for me..where would i be if this event did not take place..would i be here..and everything i would have missed. .it is so hard to explain how it makes me feel when i look around @ relay and see everyone. i want see my grandkids grow up .so thanks for coming out..i give you all a great big hand.. for giving me that chance.."

All proceeds from the relay go directly to the American Cancer Society, and it DOES make a difference--it saves lives.

Also, as a new Tastefully Simple consultant, I am able to help in a way that I wouldn't have been able to otherwise by donating some funds. So, for this weekend, 20% of ALL sales that I make either through my website OR at the relay will go to the American Cancer Society through the relay. If you order through the website, please search for Rebecca Wolfinbarger or Cathey Sparks as host, then they will earn credits toward free product from TS that they can then use for additional fundraising.

Here is my site: www.tastefullysimple.com/web/cbrothers

And, if you are local, I will be there at the relay for a couple of hours with samples so you can stop by and try some products and place orders there if you'd like.

Homemade Cheesy Alfredo Sauce (& Applebees 3 Cheese Chicken Penne)

2010-05-24T10:11:00.000-04:00

Cheesy Alfredo Sauce:

3 Tbsp Butter

1/4 cup Flour

1.5 Cups Milk

1.5 cups cheese (I used Colby-Jack)

1/2 tsp parsley

Salt

Pepper

Directions: Over medium heat, melt butter, then stir in flour mixing well. Add milk, mixing well with a whisk. Stir in cheese and additional spices (parsley, salt, pepper). And, oila, the best alfredo sauce ever! I always thought it would be much harder to make, but this was super easy.

Three Cheese Chicken Penne

(Note: I am NOT claiming this tastes just like Applebee's, only that it satisfied my craving at the time)

Penne Noodles

Chicken breast, cut into thin strips

Cheesy Alfredo Sauce

Basil

Parmesan

Diced Tomatoes

Directions: Pour some Olive Oil in a skillet and cook the chicken strips, while you prepare the Penne noodles in a separate pan. Add seasoning as desired to chicken at this time. When chicken is done cooking, stir in the Cheesy alfredo sauce and penne noodles. Simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Top with basil, parmesan cheese, and diced tomatoes.

Lots of randomness...

2010-05-19T09:01:00.000-04:00

So, I was going to rip off "Ten on Tuesday" from my friend Beth, I've been thinking about it for a bit, but this morning I have lots of randomness floating around in my head so when I saw her post I decided to do it. Then, I realized that today is Wednesday. So, it's just "randomness"

1. Speaking of Beth, I have officially signed up as a Tastefully Simple Consultant!!! I love food and cooking, so I'm super excited about it. The products are so yummy, and I love the structure of the taste-testing companies and such. Anyway, my start-up kit should arrive in the mail tomorrow and, did I mention that I'm super excited???

2. Speaking of Tuesday flying by, I had a looooong day working as an Election Officer. We voted a little over 40%, with 401 people actually coming through the doors and talking to me, the clerk. Seeing that many people can make for an interesting day. And very busy.

3. Our garden is loving the rain and sunshine combination we've had lately. We planted our green beans and corn, and on Monday (one week later), we already had green been plants 2 and 3" tall. Can't wait to have fresh produce from our garden!

4. I met with my professor who will work with me on my graduate thesis (not exactly a thesis, but similar) this fall. I then went to the library to start researching. I'm really hoping to take some time this summer to finish it up so that I will only have my Comprehensive Exams to worry about in the fall, then I will be graduated with my Masters Degree!!!

5. This is shaping up to be a very busy week, and that kind of stinks, because I'm having major allergy/sinus issues so it's no fun.

Okay, I guess 5 is enough for now.

The Wonderful thing about....

2010-05-17T14:57:00.000-04:00

Coupons! So, I won't pretend that I am completely altruistic. I began using coupons because I came across a blog detailing--in regular people terms--how to pair coupons with sales and get some great deals. I had seen on the news and such people who supposedly feed their family on $.01 or other crazy scenarios, and I always thought there was a gimmick. Then I came across some money-saving blogs and began to realize that there are a lot of things that you can get for free (or really close to free) by using coupons and sales.

Anyway, since I began, I have also seen another side of couponing--people misusing coupons, giving false info to get discounts, HUGE ridiculous stock-piles, getting freebies to sell in yardsales, etc. The bad feelings this gave me personally was almost a huge turnoff for me. But, I am able to get good quality and name-brand things for much less by using coupons.

And, here is a great reason to use coupons:

Last week, my family and I visited Grace Now Food Pantry in Richmond, KY where we will soon begin volunteering. Because of using coupons, we were able to take all the items you see pictured for donations. If purchased at retail, these items would have cost $224. I don't have the inclination to look up on the receipts exactly what I spent on all of these things, but I can tell you with certainty it was nowhere NEAR $224. We could never have afforded all of these things without using coupons and sales. Some items I got for free (tax only), and my best guess is that I paid around $20-$30. Even at the dollar store, I could never have stretched $30 this far.

We have also given some things to my mom's Relay for Life team which she has auctioned off and will use for prize baskets in games as well.

Yay for coupons :)

Yummy Italian Bread

2010-05-11T08:32:00.000-04:00

As far as yeast breads go, this is one of the quickest and easiest that I have made. There are so few ingredients and the rise time is only 30 minutes. If you are new to making yeast breads, this would be a perfect start.

1 package (2 1/4 tsp) dry yeast

1 tsp sugar

1 cup warm water

2-3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp italian seasoning

Combine yeast, sugar, and warm water in a bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes. Add oil, salt and 1 cup of flour, beat with wire whisk. Gradually add additional flour until a stiff dough is formed. Turn onto floured surface and knead for 5-8 minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic. Place dough back into bowl, cover with towel and let it rise in a warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface. Shape into a 12 inch loaf and place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Cut 3-4 slits across the top of the loaf. Combine olive oil and italian seasoning. Drizzle evenly over bread.

Bake at 400 degrees for 16 minutes.

Had a Great Vacation (long and pic heavy)

2010-05-07T23:47:00.000-04:00

I usually edit my files to resize them and/or fix lighting, etc. But, these are as-is from my camera, so they aren't perfect, but anyway, here they are...

Here is what our yard looked like on Sunday:

Yes, our yard is under all that water, along with the road. But, despite that, we were off on Monday morning to Pigeon Forge for a family vacation. My mom and my sister came along with us as well.

Monday.

We left at around 11:00. Actually, it wasn't "around," it was exactly 11:00. With 2 families, and 2 babies, I'm thinking that has to be a record. (to leave exactly on time).

Anyway, here is Caeden, excited to go on his trip.

We arrived at Smoky Mountain Christian Villiage with excitement. We were pleasantly surprised at the room. We got a GREAT deal! They had a special going--Buy 2 weeknights, get 2 weeknights free. So, we st, stayed there, in a room that could have accomodated up to 16 people, for only $224 Monday-Friday! It was super nice, full kitchen, washer & dryer, even a ping-pong table! And, there was a laminated paper with a really sweet prayer waiting for us when we arrived!

We ate some yummy Domino's for supper and I got to work on my finals for grad school. Yes, I had to do homework on vacation, which was a downer, BUT the plus side to that is that I had hubby, my sister Marsha, and my mom to help with the babies.

Tuesday:

Sadly, no pictures to commemorate this day. I was boring for most of the day, working on homework while Chad and Marsha took Caeden to the arcade to give me some semi-quiet time. I had major issues with my projects--my flash project had kinks that I couldn't figure out, and my response papers for another class got erased and I had to completely re-do them. So, my homework aspect of the trip was even more stressful.

Tuesday evening, we went to the Dixie Stampede. Forgot my camera. Overall, I was underimpressed. I thought it was kind of neat, and Caeden LOVED it. But, after seeing other shows, it kind of lost it's luster for me. Considering the price and customer service, it was my least favorite event that we went to.

Wednesday:

Dinosaur walk museum. Caeden really enjoyed this.

Here we are in the middle of the Dinosaur walk museum. That wrap is a life-saver! We had the stroller as well, but the wrap comes in so handy. I use it for shopping and everything. Great to have 2 free hands.

After seeing the dinosaurs, we went to the Rainforest zoo. They had some exotic animals (which I failed to get pics of), and they also had some goats that we could feed. So, Chad fed the goats. caeden was way to timid.

That evening we went to "Magic Beyond Belief." It was a great show that we all loved, even the babies! First of all, in this group of shows, kids get in FREE (1 child per paying adult). And, we were on the front row, which was really neat. And, I'm not one for magic shows usually, but the magician was a Christian and he made sure to state that it is performance art, and only that. He even stated that if you want a real miracle, you have to look to Christ. I just thought it was really neat, and he even stayed on at the end of the show to chat, sign autographs, etc. And, again...forgot my camera! ugh. But, it was a great show that I felt good about going to :)

Thursday

Again, I forgot my camera--do you see a trend??? We went into Gatlinburg to Ripley's Aquarium. It was neat, but it was expensive and ridiculously crowded. Caeden is so timid and gets stressed in crowded situations so it wasn't really all that I had hoped it would be, but it was neat and he did warm up and start looking and enjoying the fish and everything eventually.

That night we went to the Black Bear Jamboree. This was another dinner show that I would definitely recommend. We all loved it, and it's with the same group of shows that the magic show was in, so the kids got in for free and got their own seat and all that (Caeden was free for Dixie Stampede, but only if he sat in our lap and didn't get his own plate).

Even Logan enjoyed the show!

Caeden loved the singing and dancing!

And, who wouldn't. It was a really neat show that we all enjoyed. Here is a pic from the 50's.

Here is Caeden, being a ham. He loved that bear! As soon as we came out of the show, he went straight back to it.

And, after the show we thought we needed some more fun, and I just happened to notice a little play area on our way back to the lodge! How cool is that? Caeden thought it was really cool.

And, here is Logan being a snuggle bear. My kids are so darn cute!

And, while we were there, Chad made use of our jack to go help change a tire for someone who hit a fire hydrant and blew his. I love that man! I am so proud to be married to him. There he goes.

(In true Tennessee fashion, the people standing beside us were smoking right beside a "No smoking within 25 feet of play area" sign, and laughing at the guy who blew his tire.)

Friday:

Time to check out and go home. We had originally planned to visit the Smoky Mountain National Park, but then decided it was too long a drive, so we saved that for another trip (because we had so much fun that we're already planning to make it an annual thing)...We settled for a couple of pics taken from a little area created on the side of the road:

So, we were trying to think of one last thing to do, and settled on a visit to the Three Bears General Store. This was a huge score. The babies were less in love with this, but we adults thought it was a pretty neat place to be. I bought a cute purse and a really cute insulated picnic basket (I know, goodbye frugal with that one, but it was just so cute!). There were some neat things in the store area. There was also an arcade where Chad and I played air hockey (I won)

Then, we played basketball. (I won).

He may or may not have beaten me at every single game of ping pong we played at the lodge. There are no pics to document that.

And, Caeden got to see some bears as well.

Finally, he was tuckered out from his "trip"...so tuckered that he fell asleep in daddy's arms while eating lunch at Texas Roadhouse.

When we got home, he didn't want to come to our house, he wanted to go back to the other house. So apparently he wants to live at Smoky Mountain Christian Village from now on. (He may or may not have locked himself in the bedroom twice resulting in a call to the staff there to please come and get him out)

And, if you're wondering, somewhere in there I finally did finish my final stuff for school. We came back to the lodge for a few hours each afternoon, which worked perfectly to let us all relax a bit, and let the babies relax as well. For me, it was time to work on homework.

All in all, it was a wonderful vacation. We just all had the best time. It was so family friendly and faith friendly and I just loved it.

More CVS Savings!!!

2010-05-02T18:21:00.000-04:00

Not Pictured, 17 oz. Filippo Berio Olive Oil

Total Retail: $140.12

Sales Prices: $107.05

My Price after coupons & ECB's: $11.58

And, all of this came off a $25.00 gift card from a prescription transfer, so technically, it's all free for me. My plan is to see just how far that $25.00 can go :) Although I kind of killed it by spending some of my ecb's on those newspapers. But, I figure it just adds to my savings if I don't even have to take my newspaper costs out of my grocery/household budget. So far, I have purchased a {CVS} retail value of $222.97, with $9.57 remaining on my card.

And, I got things that my family needs, like diapers and my favorite type of razor, and the newspapers.

All in all, it was another great week at CVS.

Another great week at CVS

2010-04-27T09:50:00.000-04:00

I never get the $4/$20 coupons that people talk about (except occasionally when I can order one from recyclebank). Nor do I get $3/$15 from the coupon machine. But, the other day I did get a $5/$40 coupon. At first I wasn't too excited because sometimes it's hard enough to spend $20 in a single transaction, let alone $40. I thought that might be too much OOP for me. But, I was armed with $11.49 in ecb's, so I had a jumping off point. So, it was a very successful visit to CVS. And, if you have a $5/$40 coupon, I encourage you to consider it. Here is what I got:

CVS retail prices: $82.85

CVS sale prices (which are at or below Wal-Mart/bargain prices): $51.14

I paid after coupons/ecb's: $3.91

Starting ecb's: $11.49

Ending ecb's: $9.00

What I bought:

4 Tresemme Fresh Start @ $3.33 each (-(2) BIGI coupons, -(2) $2 off coupons; printable)

2 Dove Chocolates @ $3.00 each (-$3 off 2 bags dove. CVS coupon from machine)

1 Schick Quattro for Women @ $8.99 (-$4.00 coupon from 4/25)

1 Irish Springs Body Wash @ $2.99

1 pack of Pampers Cruisers diapers @$8.49 (-$3.00 cvs coupon from Parent magazine, -$1.50 mfr coupon)

2 3d white Oral B advantage toothbrushes @ $2.99 each (-BIGI coupon, -$2.00 coupon)

1 clearance CrossAction toothbrush @ $1.37 (-$2.00 coupon)

2 Wheat Thins @ $1.00 each (-(2) $1 off coupons printed from facebook page)

2 Fig Newtons @ $1.00 each (-(2) $1 off coupons printed from facebook page)

Also used:

$5/$40 purchase

$11.49 in ecb's

Total due after everything: $3.91 w/ $9.00 ecb's back.

I could have broken up the transactions to get even less OOP, since my total only needed to be $40, but it ended up being $51 before taxes. But, Chad and the babies were waiting in the car and I wasn't too worried about it, since $3.91 is still a really low OOP amount and I was using a gift card from a script transfer anyway.

Also, I could have gotten a lower OOP even without the ecb's if I had done separate transactions. But I wanted the $5 free dollars from that coupon.

Here is my scenario for Kingdom First Mom's $5 CVS Challenge

(without using any prior ecb's). Head over there to check out other scenarios as well:

Transaction 1

Buy Schick Quattro Razor @$8.99

-$4.00 coupon

Total Due: $4.99

ecb's back: $4.00

Transaction 2

1 Irish Springs Body Wash @ $2.99

2 Oral B 3D White Advantage toothbrushes @ $5.98

Use $1 off Irish Springs coupon

-$2.99 BIGI Oral B

-$2.00 Oral B
-$4.00 ecb's from above
Total Due: Nothing

Ecb's: $4.00

Transaction 3

Pampers @ $8.49

2 wheat thins @ $2.00

2 Fig Newtons @ $2.00
Use:
-$3.00 CVS coupon

-$1.50 coupon

-(2) $1 off Wheat Thins

-(2) $1 off Fig Newtons
-$4.00 ecb's from above

Total Due: nothing

get back $1 ecb.

Total OOP: $4.99

Total Retail Value: $30.45 w/ $1 ecb for next time

I love Meijer!!!

2010-04-16T08:56:00.000-04:00

I am ridiculously excited that Richmond is getting a Meijer!!! But, the sales this week are so good I drove to Lexington to take advantage of the great prices.

Retail Value: 127.21

I paid: 33.63

That is a savings of almost 73%! And, Meijer doesn't have inflated prices to begin with, so that is pretty good. Also, the really crazy thing is that if I had been paying attention more to my counting and hadn't left a couple coupons in my binder I could have saved $7 more! But, shopping w/ 2 babies what are ya gonna do? And, I paid full price ($2.65) for a pack of Oreos. Yeah, that end display totally sold me because it was definitely an impulse buy.

Anyway, here are some of the highlights:

All Laundry Detergent (64 loads) and Snuggle dryer sheets (80 count)= $1.99 for BOTH;

2 liter 7-UP, FREE

Green Giant Steamers, FREE

Softsoap, FREE

Betty Crocker boxed potatoes $.20 each

Country Crock 15 oz. tub, $.20 each

T.G.I.Friday's any-tizer snacks, $.50 each! (these are on "sale" at Wal-mart this week for $3.12)

Ronzoni Smart Taste Pasta $.25 each

Fleishmann's and Parkay sticks, $.50 each

Ziploc bags--Better than FREE (moneymaker) after coupons and catalina.

Old Orchard frozen concentrate juice, $.75 each.

Tyson Chicken Breast $4.99

Strawberries, $1.00

Dole Salad blends, $1.00

A lot of these coupons were printable (and the ziploc bags are a GREAT deal anyway...they are on sale $10 for $10 and if you buy 3 you can get a $2.00 on your next order, so you essentially get 3 for $1.00-you can check out twice and use the $2 right away, you don't have to come back another day.

If you're interested, go HERE to see the complete list of sales and links to coupons you can print to go with them. This doesn't list the ziploc deal, but those ARE on sale at the Lexington Meijer. They are sliders and are on an end display. The fine print on the $10 for $10 tags they are marked with says "Meijer" bags, but I scanned them and sure enough, $1.

All You magazine Deals.

2010-04-12T10:38:00.000-04:00

All You Magazine is not only full of money-saving coupons (high-value ones at that!), it is also a great read. I love the articles and features each month and enjoy reading through it.

Here are a couple of ways to save on this magazine right now:

-Get 2 free trial issues: https://subs.timeinc.net/AY/ay_2rf1990bmcc0609.jhtml?experience_id=236425&source_id=8&_requestid=108758&_requestid=108758

-Get 3 issues for $.77! Here's how:
If you have ever ordered from magazines.com, they frequently send out email gift cards in the amount of $5.00. Get the code for your gift card. Then go to Ebates. (If you don't alread)y have an account, sign up and you will be credited $5 instantly!) Find magazines.com. Under coupons and specials, you'll see a special for $5.97 subscriptions. Click through there to get to the site. One of the $5.97 subscriptions is a 3-month sub for All You magazine. Add that to your cart and use the gift card code from the email. Your price will be $.97 then you will be credited back $.20 through ebates.

FREE reusable shopping bag at Kroger!

2010-04-11T20:43:00.000-04:00

I checked my email and found this today. I'm not one to enter contests (mainly because Inever win), but there is a perk to this one--a FREE reusable shopping bag!

All you have to do is go HERE. Design a reusable shopping bag. If yours wins, you'll get a $1000 gift card to Kroger. But, either way you get a credit for a reusable shopping bag loaded to your Kroger card :)

Simple MoneyMaker at Rite Aid this Week!

2010-04-05T08:35:00.002-04:00

I was excited to find a simple money-maker scenario at Rite Aid this week.

Buy:
1 Crest toothpaste, $2.29
1 Gillette Fusion Razor, $8.00
1 pkg gillette Mach 3 disp. razors $5.99
1 pkg gillette CustomPlus razors* $5.99
Subtotal: $22.27

*The exact type of disposable razors aren't important so long as they are included in your coupons and the $5.99 sale.

Use:
-$5/$20 Video Values coupon (http://www.riteaid.com/)
-$1 off Crest (from 4/4 P&G insert)
-$4 off Gillette Fusion (from 4/4 P&G insert)
-BIGI FREE Gillette Disp. Razors (from 4/4 P&G insert)
-$2 off Gillette Disp. Razor (package insert, 3/7 P&G insert).

After Coupon Total: $4.28 (before taxes)

Total Single Check Rebates: $5.50 ($4 Gillette Fusion, $1.50 Crest) Making this a moneymaker. This is also a great scenario for newbies, since most of the coupons are in this week's paper or printable. If you don't have the $2 off coupon, your total will be $2 higher, but still a great deal after the rebate.

And, in that package of Custom Plus razors that I got, there are $5 worth of coupons.

Check out Money-Saving Mom for more great coupon match-ups at Rite Aid and other stores.

$15 Entertainment Book!!!

2010-04-03T17:21:00.001-04:00

I was really excited to find this deal. My Brother-in-Law bought us one of these books a couple Christmases ago and it was great. There were some fabulous coupons in there! And, with this special, they are only $15, and you get FREE shipping! You can save way more than that. Just check out your area to see what kind of coupons are being offered. These are good through October 2010, so you still have plenty of time to use them.

50 FREE 4x6 Photo Prints!!! (Don't even pay shipping!)

2010-04-02T17:01:00.001-04:00

Join CVS Photo and get 50 FREE 4x6 photos! Have them shipped to your local CVS and you won't even have to pay shipping! Can't ask for better than free :) This came at a great time for me as I am REALLY behind on printing pics!

Grocery Deals.

2010-04-02T08:37:00.000-04:00

I've gotten okay at getting things for cheap at drugstores (Rite-Aid, CVS), but I'm still not as good at the grocery thing so I was pleased with my shopping trip last night.

Here is what I got at Wal-Mart:

I also got an All You magazine for $2.24 that's not in the picture.

Regular Prices at Wal-mart: approx. $50.09;

I paid: $25.02

I'm not going to list everything out, but will list a few that were exceptionally good deals:

Price Match:

10 lb bag of Potatoes @ Meijer for $1.49

Blue Bonnet @ Meijer for $.50 each

Betty Crocker Warm Delights (3.1 oz) @ Walgreens for $1

-$.50 off printable coupon at http://www.coupons.com/

-$.75 off coupon from 3/28 Smart Source insert.

Final Price: $.25-$.50 each.

Other Deals:

McCormick Seasonings $1

-$1 off coupon at http://www.coupons.com/ makes them FREE.

KISS nail stickers $1.97

-$2 off coupon at http://www.coupons.com/ makes them FREE.

Reach Floss $.97

-Use $1.00 off printable coupon HERE to get this for FREE.

Yo-Plus $1.69
-Go here to sign up for a free product coupon.

Nestle Chocolate Chips $2.00

-$1.00 off coupon HERE. (You may have to sign up) makes them $1.50 each.

Ronzoni Pasta $1.28

-Go here to get a coupon for $.75 off, making it $.58 a box.

Grapes: $1.50/lb

Strawberries $1.00!!! I was so excited about the inexpensive produce I found.

And, what I got at Kroger

Kroger Retail Price: $46.73;

I paid: $19.15

Some of the deals:

Kroger Orange Juice, 1 gallon: $1.99

Tyson Chicken Breast, $5.99

Nature's Own thin-sliced Bagels, $1.99

-Use $.75 off coupon from coupons.com to make them $1.74

These thin-sliced bagels are a money-saver for us because Caeden usually ends up wasting a bit of his, so this will be perfect--8 in a pack instead of 6, and no more waste.

On the Vine Tomatoes: $1.99/lb

Bird's Eye Steam Fresh Veggies: $1

-Use $.50/2 printable coupon found at http://www.coupons.com/. This will double at Kroger, making them $.50 each.

Stouffer's Family-Size frozen entrees: $3.99

-Use $2.50 off coupon found HERE on their facebook page to get these for $1.50 each.

Not bad since they are usually around $7+ each. And, I have to add a disclaimer that I NEVER buy frozen meals, but these were so cheap I just couldn't pass them up. And, they'll be nice for Chad on the last few nights of night class for me.

Anyway, there is my weekly grocery shopping.

Dollar General Savings.

2010-03-31T11:01:00.000-04:00

The Dollar General store in our town recently renovated, so they had a grand re-opening sale. For me, that meant a coupon in the mail for $5 off a $20 purchase. I had to use it by 4/2, so I went over there last night.

I got the above items. Regular Dollar General price: $30.15 (after taxes). My price after sale and coupon discounts: $6.67.

I could have used coupons to walk out of there paying next to nothing (only taxes), but I needed some things that I didn't have coupons for--baby gas drops, Doritoes (for black bean taco salad), and sugar.

What I bought and Coupons I used:
Lysol Neutra-Air: on sale this week for $6.00
Snuggle, on sale for $4.00
Doritoes, on sale for: $2.60
(2) Halls: $3.00
Gas Drops: $3.75
Sugar, on sale for : $1.95
Pre-Coupon Total, with sale prices: $21.30 (plus tax)

Coupons Used
-$5/$20 purchase coupon
- $4 off Lysol Neutra-Air coupon from the 3/14 Smart Source insert
-(2) FREE Halls Cough Drops coupons from the 3/28 Smart Source insert
-$3 off Snuggle (32+ loads or 70+ count dryer sheets)

After Coupon total: $5.90 (plus tax)

Coupon Shopping at Rite Aid

2010-03-27T13:08:00.000-04:00

Before I discovered coupons, I never shopped at Rite-Aid. I remember my mom transferring a prescription and saying she would geat a$25 gift certificate out of the deal. I wasn't impressed. They have some of the highest prices around. Their sale prices are generally just the everyday price at Wal-Mart. I had no reason to shop there.

Enter couponing. Now, I routinely save 75%-95% when shopping there! Click here to see some of my recent bargains at Rite Aid.

Here are some money-saving programs at Rite-Aid:

Prescription Transfers. If you transfer a new prescription to Rite Aid, they routinely offer gift cards of $25 for doing this.

Video Values. If you haven't signed up yet, go. Each month, Rite-Aid offers videos that you can watch and earn high value coupons. (Best of all, these are store coupons, so they can be stacked with manufacturer coupons). Each video lasts an average of 30 seconds or so, although a few may last up to 2 minutes. It's basically like a commercial you would see on TV, except that at the end of each one you get a great coupon for the product. AND, if you get 20 video credits, then you'll get a bonus coupon for $5 off a $20 purchase!

If you haven't signed up yet, do it in the next few days so that you can still get the coupons for March!

Single Check Rebates. This is a great program. Each month, there is a list of participating items with different rebate amounts. Usually the rebates are paired with great sales and coupons, resulting in really cheap or MONEYMAKER! items. This is a no-hassle program because you don't have to mail in anything, you can do it all online if you choose. Simply sign up for an account. When you are ready to enter your receipts, you enter the Store #, Register #, Transaction #, and date. That's it. Depending on your store this updates to your account immediately or can take up to 2-3 days. Build your rebates throughout the month and then request your check at the end of the rebate period. (You can only request 1 check).

Wellness+ Rewards Card This is a rewards card which allows you to earn points with purchases. Points earn you discounts on future purchases.

My Rite Aid Trip this week

2010-03-27T12:23:00.001-04:00

A great week for baby products. If you don't have a baby around, this is still a great deal to stock up on gifts for baby showers, church nurseries, shelters, etc.

Buy:
1 Johnson's baby product-- on sale for $2.99
2 Huggies Jumbo Packs--on sale for $8.99 each
Total: $20.97

Use:
-$5/$20 Video Values coupon
-$1 off Johnson's baby product (in-ad coupon)
-$1 off printable Johnson's baby product manufacturer coupons;
-(2) $3 off printable Huggies diapers coupons;
-$2 off Huggies diapers (Video Values)

Total after coupons: $5.97

New Vocal Point Exclusive Coupon

2010-03-27T11:45:00.000-04:00

Kelloggs has a new snack out. Fruit flavored snacks in the shape of letters! We limit such snacks in our house, but I thought I would share this coupon (from vocal point) for those of you who would like it.

Click here to get a $1.00 off coupon from vocal point. And, also go to http://www.vocalpoint.com/ to sign up and get some great free samples and coupons in the future. A couple weeks ago, I got a full-size shampoo from Pantene Pro-V, the new nature fusion shampoo.

Happy Mail!!!

2010-03-27T10:41:00.000-04:00

Finally, something crafty! I had the pleasure of creating a layout for the February issue of Basic Grey's newsletter, Just the Basics. I was really excited, and here is the layout I made. If you'd like to see the original sketch, check out the newsletter link.

And, a couple days ago, these showed up at my house! I had a few sheets of the Origins line, but I really wanted the entire collection, and I didn't have any of the green at heart, so I was really excited to get this package :)

Couponing: Beginner Tips

2010-03-26T15:42:00.001-04:00

I am learning as I go, so I thought I would share.

Save ALL of your coupons. Yes, all of them. You may think you won't use it, but when you see that you could have gotten the item for FREE, or even better as a MONEYMAKER!, you'll be wishing you had that coupon back. Click here for a list of where I get my coupons.

Organize your coupons. They will add up and you won't use them if you can't find them! I use a combination of 2 systems. For Sunday paper and booklets, I save the entire inserts, filed by date. For loose, printables, etc., I organize them by category. This works well for me.

Circulars/Sales. This is the KEY to successful couponing. For years, I never used coupons, because even with coupons, it was cheaper just to buy the generic/store brand. Then I ran across a couponing site and learned that if you pair up coupons with sales (and rebate or rewards programs), you can get name brand items for 75% off or even FREE. And, when the store pays YOU to take home their merchandise, that's always a good thing too!

Be Prepared. I always plan my shopping trip out at home, before I actually get to the store. I look at my coupons, sales papers, and other bargain sites to see what deals I can get and I plan my trip out. For me, this means that I write out a list per transaction, and I use a paper clip to attach all of the coupons that I will need, so that everything is together. Trust me, you don't want to be in the store, with a cart full of stuff, 2 screaming babies, and trying to sort through coupons! And, I'm guessing the cashier wouldn't like you much either.

What is your best couponing tip? What do you wish you had known when you first started? Any questions? Feel free to ask them here.

Printable Coupons!

2010-03-26T09:48:00.002-04:00

You can now access coupons from the link on my left sidebar. Just click to access coupons.com and print your coupons :)

Coupon Booklets Available

2010-03-25T13:03:00.001-04:00

Here are a few coupon booklets you can sign up for:

-Decor Done Right: $30 of P&G coupons.

-Eat Better America: $10 in coupons. This one expires TOMORROW, so request your coupon booklet now.

-Box Tops for Education: $10 coupon booklet. This one expires 3/26 as well.

Games & Toys Coupons!

2010-03-25T11:30:00.000-04:00

Click HERE to get some great games and toys coupons from Hasbro.

I hope you kept your Target sales paper, because you can get some really cheap games! Through Saturday, they have Connect 4 and Monopoly on sale for $7 each! Use the $5 off monopoly coupon, and the $4 off Connect 4 coupon to get them for $2 and $3 each (both coupons should be on the first page of the link). If you're near target, you can go here to get a $3 store coupon and get the Connect 4 game for FREE! Just look for the Hasbro logo to find the coupon.

Also, remember that Wal-Mart will price match! I got both these games at Wal-Mart for only $5 total!

Where to get Coupons?

2010-03-25T11:01:00.001-04:00

Okay, first installment in my "Become a Coupon Queen" series.

A lot of people have asked where I get my coupons, so I decided to share a bit about where to find them.

-The Sunday Paper. This is probably the most obvious source of coupons. And, if you are local to me, you can get the Herald Leader at a GREAT deal--52 Sundays for $52!!! That is only $1 per paper instead of $2 on the newsstand! CLICK HERE. Not sure how long this deal lasts, but it is current as of 3/25/10

-All You Magazine. First of all, I really enjoy this magazine. Plus, each issue has around $75 worth of great coupons. You can find it at Wal-Mart for around $2.25, or you can subscribe through Amazon for $19.95 for 1 year All You (1-year). But, if you'd like to subscribe, you can also sign up for EBATES and then click through their site to get to magazines.com. If you do this, you will get a $5 bonus for signing up through ebates, PLUS 21% cash back on your magazine purchase. So, if you do this, you can spend $19.97 on the magazine and then get back $9.19...not too bad!

-Online Printable Coupon Sites: You can print coupons directly from your computer by visiting the following sites: Coupons.com, http://www.smartsource.com/, http://www.redplum.com/.

-Manufacturer Sites. Be sure to visit your favorite manufacturer websites for coupons Some offer coupons from their websites and/or email savings if you sign up for their mailing lists. Also, some will send coupons in the mail if you request them.

-Other Online Printables: Go HERE for a great searchable database of printable coupons.

-Coupon Booklets. Many manufacturing companies will frequently offer coupon booklets that you can request. I just got one in the mail from P&G through their Home Made Simple site. Click HERE to sign up for the decor done right booklet, with coupons from Dawn, Cascade, Swiffer, Etc.

-Tear Pads in Store. Look for these in grocery stores to get manufacturer coupons for lots of different products.

-From the products themselves. Lots of times, products will have "peelie" coupons for instant savings when you buy, or for rebates, or they will have coupons inside the packaging that you can use on future purchases.

Feel free to leave your own coupon ideas if I have left out anything.

Sweet CVS Green Tag Deal!

2010-03-25T09:26:00.000-04:00

Remember the $1 off CVS paper towels that has been printing from the scanner at CVS? Well, the last time I went, I got a "buy 2 Earth Essentials products and receive a FREE green bag tag" SO, if you have 2 of those paper towel coupons, you can get 2 single rolls of paper towels, PLUS a green bag tag all for only $.58!

And, remember you scan your bag tags each time you use your reusable shopping bag and every 4th visit you'll get $1.00 ecb! Pretty sweet!

The Coupon Evolution...

2010-03-24T08:19:00.000-04:00

Here is some deoderant that I bought a while back at Big Lots. It's at big lots, so it should be cheap, right?

Then, right after I decided to start clipping coupons and matching them up with sales, I got this Old Spice deoderant for about a dollar. I thought I was a coupon queen, let me tell ya.

And, HERE is the deoderant I got at CVS last week for FREE. Yep, all of them were free, and gives me some extra deoderant so that (a) I don't have to worry about running out and having to pay full price for them because we "need them now," and (b) I have extras to donate.

Salsa Chicken w/ Rice

2010-03-23T09:31:00.001-04:00

Welcome to Tasty Tuesday!

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts;

1 can diced tomatoes;

1/4 cup salsa;

1 can black beans;

1/4 tsp garlic salt;

1/2-1 cup mozzerella cheese, shredded

3 cups prepared rice (or angel hair pasta)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place chicken breasts out flat in a small casserole dish. In a bowl, combine tomatoes, salsa, black beans, and garlic salt. Pour this mixture over chicken breasts. Bake for 20 minutes, or until chicken is thoroughly cooked. (This is a good time to prepare your rice or pasta). Sprinkle the cheese on top, and bake for 2-3 more minutes to melt cheese a bit. Serve over rice or angel hair pasta.

Thanks for visiting! For other Tasty Tuesday recipes, visit Beauty and Bedlam.

Get Cheap Diapers this week!!!

2010-03-20T21:58:00.000-04:00

If you're new to couponing and have never printed one from the internet, NOW is the time to start (if you have babies in diapers anyway...! You can go HERE, HERE, OR, find Huggies on facebook, go to any or all of these places and get a coupon for $3.00 off any pack of Huggies diapers!!!

Keep reading, it gets better...

If you're new to this, go to http://www.riteaid.com/ and click on the "video values" link. Set up an account. You can now watch short videos, which are basically 30 second commercials, and for every video you watch, you will get a coupon in your account which you can then print. There should be several huggies ones--2 for pull-ups and 1 for huggies. Watch these videos and you'll get $2 off coupons. Also, once you get 20 credits, you will receive a coupon for $5/$20 purchase.

at Rite Aid:

If you're new to this, go to www.RiteAid.com and click on the "video values" link. Set up an account. You can now watch short videos, which are basically 30 second commercials, and for every video you watch, you will get a coupon in your account which you can then print. There should be several huggies ones--2 for pull-ups and 1 for huggies. Watch these videos and you'll get $2 off coupons. Also, once you get 20 credits, you will receive a coupon for $5/$20 purchase.

Also, go to http://www.coupons.com/. Once there, enter your zip code. Then on the righthand side bar you can click on "Rite Aid" in the categories. If you are local to me, you should see a coupon for $3 off a $15 (or more) purchase at Rite Aid. If you live in another area, you may get a $5 off $25 instead.

Now that you have all your coupons, you're ready to shop.

Buy (2) jumbo packs of Huggies Diapers, on sale for $8.99 each; Total: $17.98
Use $3/$15 coupon.
Use (2) $3.00 off coupons.
Use your $2.00 off Huggies coupon from the Rite Aid video values above;

Total Due: $6.98 (+ tax). Not bad for 2 packages of diapers!!!

AND, Rite Aid has a rebate for Huggies, so you'll get $1 back through their rebate program, which is really easy. Just go to http://www.riteaid.com/, click on "single check rebates" on the lefthand sidebar, and get registered. THen all you have to do is come back and enter in your receipt info. You don't even have to mail anything in. At the end of the month, you request your check for all of the rebates you earned.

If they are out, don't forget to ask for a raincheck. Rite Aid offers rainchecks unless the ad states otherwise.

************************************************************************
At CVS Pharmacy, it's Pampers that you can get for cheaper. CVS Pharmacy has a great rewards program called Extra Care. Here, I will just give you a really simple diapers scenario, but know that if you want to put a little more thought into it, you can routinely get things for FREE or "moneymaker" at CVS using their Extra Care system.

For the diapers this week:
--As soon as you get to CVS, sign up for an extra care card.

Buy 1 jumbo pack of Pampers: $8.97
Use $2.00 coupon (these come from Sunday papers and/or home mailers. I don't have the dates).

Pay: $6.97 (if you don't have the coupon, this will be $8.97);
Get back $3.00 ECB on your receipt.

Now, purchase another jumbo pack of Pampers: $8.97
Use $2.00 (or $1.50 off coupon);
Use $3.00 ECB from the first purchase;
Total Due: $3.97.

So, if you have the coupons, you paid $10.97 for 2 packages of Pampers. If you didn't have the coupons, you still saved $3.00 by using your ECB's, and paid $14.97 for 2 packs of Pampers, BUT you still have $3.00 to spend on a future purchase. But, keep watching, because in the next day or so I will be posting a more in-depth scenario to use your ECB's to save even more money.

*******************************************************************
If you're still with me after all that...

I wasn't planning to post all this crazy coupon stuff on my blog, but some people have shown interest, so I decided to start. Look for some posts to come about basic coupon info and more info about our local stores, like Kroger, CVS, and Rite-Aid :)

I will warn you though, it's a little bit addictive! It's so exciting to think about saving approximately 75% on ALL of our basic household stuff like diapers, deoderant, body wash, shampoo, toilet paper, etc. So glad you all are joining me on the journey to couponing!

Rite Aid.

2010-03-16T12:54:00.001-04:00

I actually had a great scenario worked out for Rite Aid, but then I got there and some of the things I had planned weren't available, or prices were a little off, and I had both babies with me so I wasn't all about re-working my scenario. But, if you have the time you could turn this into a money maker.

Rite Aid Regular Prices: $99.25;
My out-of-pocket cost: $26.13 (after sales tax)

PLUS, I qualified for a $25 rebate for buying $50 from a select list, so after that, my net price for all of this will be: $1.13 Not too shabby.

Just a note, I usually don't do the whole rebate thing, and won't usually spend oop money for something I wouldn't ordinarly buy just because there is a rebate. I just distrust them as a whole because they take so long and because there is always a chance of some minute thing being "wrong" and making it invalid and you don't really have a lot of control about it. However, Rite Aid rebates are nice because they are done online, no mailing things in. And, they are electronically confirmed by your receipt info, so you get to keep your actual receipt, and you can see the rebate posted to your account instantly in some cases, or in 2-5 days.

I was excited about the cheap toilet paper and candy. Chad was excited about the visine. I swear that boy is adicted to eye drops. Although after what happened to his cousin (she had a torn cornea or something like that because her eyes were so dry), I have stopped making fun of him quite so much about it.

Budget Check.

2010-03-13T20:02:00.000-05:00

We're ending the first pay period of our new envelope system budget, and my first few weeks of using coupons like a "krazy coupon lady" So, I thought I would post a little report of how it is going.

Our grocery/household budget was $75 for the 2 week period (luckily we had some pretty well stocked cabinets before beginning this pay period). I tried to save all of my receipts, but some ended up lost. Here is what I do have though:

Save-A-Lot: I spent $9.19 on $9.69 in merchandise.
Kroger: I spent $12.28 on $53.69 in merchandise;
Rite Aid: I spent $4.65 on $36.52 in merchandise;
CVS: I spent $11.72 on $62.40 in merchandise.
Walmart: $31.24 on $31.24 in merchandise. (no coupons or sales, but there were things I needed).

Totals: Spent $69.08; 189.97 in merchandise. Not too shabby.

We've learned that this is a live and learn kind of thing. We're starting out on the whole budget thing, and I have to say that the cash spending/envelope system has been awesome for us. We've tried to set a budget in the past and it didn't really work out so great, but this one has been much easier to stick to.

Other notes on our new envelope budget system:
-Instead of allotting money per pay period, I think we need to start out with allotting it per week instead. This time around our envelopes were almost empty after the first week, leaving us with little to work with for the second week. So, we'll be having separate envelopes this time around for the groceries/household and fun money each week instead of per pay period (Chad gets paid twice a month).

And, I think this will work better for my menu planning as well. Sometimes I find that by the second week of my 2-week plan, I'm not really "feeling" the meals which makes them less fun, and adds stress back into the act of cooking. So, I think that my meals will be more relevant to each week if I make weekly meal plans. Also, this makes sense to match up with the weekly sales and shopping to plan my meals.

I love CVS and Coupons!!!

2010-03-09T11:00:00.000-05:00

CVS has a great ad this week!!! Here is what I ended up doing. I did start off with a $5 ECB leftover from a couple weeks ago.

Transaction 1:
Buy 1 Nivea lip gloss @ $2.99;
Buy 1 Oral B Cross Action toothbrush @$4;
Total before coupons/ECB's: $6.99
Use $.75 off Oral B Cross Action coupon;
Use $5.00 ECB
Total OOP: $1.24 (plus tax);
ECB's Earned: $2.99 + $4.00;

Transaction 2:
Buy 1 Oral B. Cross-Action toothbrush @ $4;
Total: $4
Use $.75 off Oral B Cross action coupon
Use $2.99 ECB from above
Total OOP: $0.26 (plus tax)
ECB's earned: $4.00

Transaction 3:
Buy 4 Boxes Raisin Bran @ $10;
Buy 1 Gillette Fusion Razor @ $8.99;
Buy 1 single roll CVS Paper Towels @ $1.29;
Total due before coupons, ECB's: $20.28
Use $4/$20 purchase from CVS email;
Use (2) $1.50/2 printable coupons;
Use $4 off Gillette Fusion Razor;
Use $1 off CVS paper towels (from coupon dispenser @ CVS);
Use $8 in ECB's from above.
Total OOP: $.28 (plus tax);
ECB's Earned: $5.00 + $4.00;

So, I started off with $5.00 ECB.
Spent OOP: $1.78 (+tax);
and ended up with $31.27 in merchandise (at sales prices), plus $9.00 in ECB's to use later. I wish I had taken pictures of all the things I got, but I didn't :(

Not too shabby, huh???? Even if you didn't have the $5.00 ECB to start off with, it would be a great deal.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

2010-03-03T09:14:00.001-05:00

I LOVE these things! But, hubby is more of a blueberry person, so I usually make 1/2 batch blueberry and 1/2 batch chocolate chip. So, feel free to substitute something else for the chocolate chips.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbsp milled Flaxseed*

6 tbsp water*

2/3 cup milk

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

1 bag chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees; Combine all dry ingredients and mix well. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Our in wet ingredients, in the order they are listed. Mix well. Pour into greased muffin pans and bake for 15-20 minutes.

*If you don't have milled flaxseed, you can substitute 2 eggs and leave out the flaxseed and water. That was how the recipe was originally written, but I didn't have any eggs so I substituted the flaxseed and water. But, now that I have tried it with both, I greatly prefer the milled flaxseed. The eggs make them too cakey or something. And, the flaxseed is good for you. You can find it in the baking section of major grocery stores.

More budget stuff.

2010-03-03T08:01:00.000-05:00

Chad and I have been trying to get our finances under control. Not that they are out of control, but there are things that we tend to waste money on and we want to be better stewards with our finances. I was browsing the web a while ago and discovered Dave Ramsey. I have to say that we do not have an extra $100+ to drop on his class, but I did find a nice tip on his website that seems so simple.

The envelope method. So, we made our budget out and the money for groceries, gas, and "fun" (which includes dates, eating out, something we may want, etc). Then, we go to the ATM and get cash for those categories. Put it in an envelope, and when it's gone, it's gone. No more using our bank cards and overspending in those areas. We've only technically been doing this system since Friday (payday), but so far it is working, and I can already tell it's going to work for us. It's just an extra step of accountability to have it out like that.

We budgeted out nearly every $$$ of our money, so that we aren't left wondering what happened to it, we wanted every dollar to be accounted for. I think Chad is on the fence about how much he wants to commit to this, but he's being a good sport about it.

That's what we're doing with Chad's salary. Now we're still trying to decide what to do with other money that comes into our house, like the $50/week that I will be receiving for coordinating the Wednesday night meal at church beginning next week. We know that we'd like to allocate that money to the following categories: savings, loan payments, and extra giving. We're just praying about the specifics.

Overall, my goals are to get out of debt, waste less money, and increase our giving.

So, there you have it. What are your budget goals and what steps are you taking to reach them? Any tips you have found successful?

Kroger

2010-03-02T18:48:00.000-05:00

I have a bit of a stock-pile of food at the moment and this is the paycheck that is heavier on bills, so I challenged myself to try and shop from our pantry for my menu these next 2 weeks. But, I still had to purchase some breakfast items. Luckily for me, it was a pretty good week for breakfast things at Kroger this week. I also got a couple other things. Here is what I got:

2 Green Giant Steamables (frozen packages). These are fancy and name-brand and something I never would have splurged on usually. Regular Price: 2.35 each; Sale Price: $1.28 each; My price after coupons: $0.28 each. No misprint. Twenty-eight cents!

Yoplait Kids Yogurt. Regular: $2.63 each; Sale Price: 2/$4.00; My price after coupons: 2/$1.80;

Lucky Charms, 24 oz. Regular: $5.99; Sale Price: $2.99; My price after coupons: $1.45

Fiber One 90 Cal. bars. Regular: $3.69; Sale Price: $2.29; My price after coupons: $0.89

2 cans Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls. Regular: $1.75 each; Sale Price: $1.25 each; My price after coupons: $0.65 each.

I also got some lunch meat w/ no coupons. And, I have a confession to make. I didn't look closely enough at the box of cereal I got, so I got the wrong size which was in the wrong place on the shelf and didn't get mine that cheap, but I could have. (and those are internet coupons too, so if anyone is interested I can point you in the right direction).

And, my kroger DOUBLES coupons up to $.50 so that is awesome too. That's how the green giant steamers were so cheap. I bought two and had 2 printable coupons for $.50 off which doubled to $1.00 off each!

Even with those small things, at the bottom of my receipt I spent $9.84 and saved $16.34, or 62%. Not as great as some ladies I've seen but if you save more than you spend, that's always a good thing in my book!

I have to admit, I always thought coupons were a waste of time. My theory was that coupons were for name brand things only. We always buy store brands, and usually a few cents off the name brand is still more than or equal to the store brand, so no money saved. BUT, then I learned that when you add them to a sale and all that good stuff is when you save the money. Anyway, I'm excited to be getting things I would need anyway for less.

New Weekly Menu

2010-03-01T13:26:00.001-05:00

I haven't been posting these, because I have been neglecting my blog lately. I initially started it as a scrapbooking blog, and I just haven't been feeling that lately. I got my March kit from APIT on Saturday though, so I'm looking forward to scrapping with it--for the first time in weeks!

Anyway, I spent the morning looking through my paper/coupons and planning my shopping trip and menu for the next couple of weeks. Unfortunately my ink is low in my printer so I'm going to have to get some ink which is killing my budget, but overall I think I'll do pretty good. Kroger has some really good sales this week.

Monday:
Lunch-CHicken nuggets, green beans, mashed potatoes, biscuits;
Dinner-frozen pizza (I have night class)

Tuesday:
Lunch-tacos
Dinner-BBQ ribs, baked potato, steamed broccoli

Wednesday:
Lunch: leftovers
Dinner- @ church

Thursday:
Lunch-Italian chicken
Dinner-goulash

Friday:
Lunch: toasted turkey & cheese sandwiches
Dinner: out for date night :)

Saturday:
Lunch-Calzones
Dinner-cheeseburgers w/ fries and baked beans

Sunday:
lunch-Breaded chicken strip salad w/ homemade breadsticks
Dinner-Small group meeting (I'm responsible for homemade italian breadsticks

And, speaking of dinner at church on Wednesday nights, I am going to be taking over as coordinator of our Wednesday night meals! I am really excited about it. I will be responsible for all the planning of the menus, shopping, and cooking/clean-up for about 60-80 people each week. Luckily I will have some awesome volunteers to help as well. I can't wait to get started and make my first shopping trip :)

Shopping has never been so much fun!

2010-02-28T08:17:00.001-05:00

At the end of January, I used my first real coupons. Kroger was having an amazing sale, and I got a tube of toothpaste for FREE, along with a tub of Country Crock. I was beside myself with excitement. Really. I was hooked. I'm still just getting started, but it really adds an extra thrill to go to the grocery store when you can get stuff for free or cheap.

There are ladies out there who average saving 50% (or more) on their entire grocery/household bill each month! So, I have been hesitant to post about my savings which are really so small in comparison. But, I've decided to start.

I LOVE Dove Chocolates! So, when I saw them on sale for 2/$3, AND I had a $1 off coupon from Rite Aid Video rewards, AND there was a $1 rebate, I just knew that I had to get some! Add to that, I had a $5/20 coupon (also from video rewards), and I really had to go.

Here is what I ended up with:

Rite-Aid Price after taxes: $34.16

My price after sales and coupons: $7.92

Not as great as I have seen others do before, but that is over a 75% savings, so I was excited. And, I just have to add that we do not use paper plates in our house. But, we're hosting our small group from church tonight so we were going to need some.

More Stash usage.

2010-02-15T11:08:00.001-05:00

First and foremost...I have to share this AMAZING sale from Jill at Memorable Seasons--35% off all items in the "What's New" section of her store...this is brand spanking new stuff at 35% off! You won't find that anywhere else...

Here is another layout that I made using my "use your stash" kit that I created for myself at the beginning of the month. I am really having a lot of fun with this little project.

And, just a reminder that I am using papers from this stack that I got from Hobby Lobby:

So, all of the papers came from this stack, and all of the embellies that I am using are all from my stash.

Quick Chicken Parmisan Garlic Bread

2010-02-13T07:00:00.001-05:00

I'm so excited to share this, because it is yummy. I got the inspiration for this from a cooking magazine. Chad makes fun of me because I like recipe books with pictures. But the reason is that pictures inspire me. I rarely follow a recipe exactly anyway, but I can see a picture of something that looks good and then recreate it with ingredients that my family will like. So, yay for that.

Ingredients:
1 loaf garlic bread, cut in half top to bottom (most already are).
6 fully cooked breaded chicken strips. (I got the pre-cooked frozen kind)
1 1/2 cups mozzerella cheese
1/2 cup pizza sauce.

Preheate oven to 425 degrees. Cut garlic bread (tops and bottoms) into 3 pieces, about 5" each. Bake garlic bread pieces and chicken strips for 10 minutes, turning the chicken strips halfway through. Remove from oven. Place 1 chicken strip on top of each piece of the garlic bread. Top chicken with pizza sauce and mozzerella cheese. Return to oven on Broil for about 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted.

A couple of notes: I chopped up my chicken before putting it on the bread. Also, I'm a bad recipe-maker and didn't really measure the cheese or sauce, so those are approximate amounts. Feel free to add more/less sauce and cheese as your family prefers.

This is so yummy and literally from start to finish was less than 20 minutes or so. I served it with a salad.

Are you a "Savvy Scrapper"?

2010-02-10T10:04:00.000-05:00

I have been so excited to share this! When I was working with SNR magazine, I wrote an article called Savvy Scrapper. It was intended to be an ongoing monthly thing, so I might share some more of the ideas I had on my blog each month...we'll see.

Anyway, the idea is to be on a budget without having your projects look cheap. Use packaging, make your own embellies, be a smart shopper, etc. We are a one-income family and my scrapping budget is almost nonexistent. And, that is what this article is about. Here is a little sneak peek, but basically I made myself a little kit and then created all of these embellies and even had stuff leftover...anyone want to guess how much money I spent? The kit included everything I needed to make all of these embellies and have stuff left over.

If you have access to the magazine and are interested in the article, you can find it HERE.

Also, be watching later this week for something fun :)

Stuff.

2010-02-09T08:48:00.000-05:00

A lot has been going on here. We took Logan to the doctor last week to get an EEG. Found out yesterday that it was completely normal! Yay :) So, we have to take him tomorrow morning to consult his doctor and start weaning him from his phenobarb. It's one of those meds you can't just stop taking. That was a huge weight off our shoulders and thanks to everyone who was praying for him.

This week we are getting ready to go to Illinois to visit Chad's parents before the craziness of fire season starts. So, it'll be a busy week. I'm still working on several things, just trying to find time to do it. My kiddos never sleep! Although Logan is actually napping right now and Caeden is allowing me to type this, that's not the usual case. And, Caeden will let me do some things, but not in my scrap room at all.

Also, some of you scrapping people may be able to give me some advice on a couple of things. I've been looking at kits. Trying to talk my hubby into a 6-month sub for me. I've looked at several in terms of value and the quality of items--I looked at every kit in the list over at Willow Traders! Anyway, I got down to the following list that I am now going to go back through: Freehand Scraps, Kenner Road, Scarlet Lime, Studio Calico, My Creative Scrapbook, Noel Mignon, Scrapbook Doodle, Scrapbook Sussies, Scraptacular, The Scrap Room, Transparent Touches...Does anyone have any experiences to share about any of those? Good or bad? Any suggestions?

Also, I'm looking for some challenge sites for inspiration, if anyone has any challenge sites to suggest.

And, because I just have to include a picture, here is one of us from Christmas...just realized that I don't think I ever shared it.

And, speaking of Christmas, here is a layout that I did for SNR's Fancy Pants feature a couple months ago. It was also featured in the November issue of the magazine in the sketch article, using a sketch by Carey Bridges. I just loved the design of the sketch.

Snow Cream!

2010-02-06T14:45:00.001-05:00

For those of you who are still getting lots of fun (or not so fun) snow, here is a fun recipe. You'll see that mine is a little melted in the picture. That's because I hadn't intended to take a picture of this. In my mind, everyone makes snow cream. I never realized it might be a regional thing until people started requesting the recipe. So, here is my half-eaten, a little melty snow cream :)

If you're me, you throw in some snow, add in about a teaspoon of vanilla, and some sweetened condensed milk, followed by some chocolate for added flavor. But since that isn't very precise, I found a similar recipe for you guys. So, if you're Paula Deen, you would use:

Ingredients:

8 cups snow (or shaved ice she says)

1 can sweetened condensed milk;

1 tsp vanilla.

Mix it all up and enjoy. You have to really stir it to get everything to mix well with the snow. But, seriously this is some good stuff. My mid-west born hubby had never had it before and he was surprised at how good it was. I think he doubted me. Also, feel free to substitute as necessary. When we were growing up, my mom always used evaporated milk and sugar rather than the sweetened condensed milk, but when I made this I didn't have either of those things (yes, I ran out of SUGAR! can you believe it? I couldn't either). So, I used the sweetened condensed milk because that's what I had on hand. Just make it work for you and enjoy it for the yumminess that it is :)

And as a bonus here is a pic of Caeden enjoying some last weekend. Yes, he randomly took his shirt off in the winter, but I assure you our house was warm :) And, as I look at this pic, he may have been eating just plain snow at this point, because he kept saying, "more flakes, more flakes" It was cute.

Use your Stash Friday (winner included)

2010-02-05T11:03:00.001-05:00

Lots of things going on today. First of all, I'm working on a bit of a redesign on my blog,
oving over to Wordpress. I'm hoping for no blog disasters and that I won't regret the move. I'm hoping the new blog will be ready by Monday, but that might be a bit optimistic. We'll see.

In the meantime I have a couple of layouts to share with you. Some of you may remember that I purchased a student edition of CS4 for a class I'm taking this semester. It is totally kicking my butt. I do so much better in my simpler, free programs that I am used to using. Any tips for learning photoshop for editing would be much appreciated. I'm determined to "get it" but it's proving to be very frustrating.

Anyway, you may remember THIS POST about my stash challenge to myself. Here is the kit that I ended up making for myself. I pretty much just went through all my stuff and dug out any and everything that I thought would go along with this kit. My purpose wasn't necessarily to limit myself, but to use my stash. I ended up with a huge kit, including many things that I had nearly forgotten I even had.

Here are the first couple of layouts that I have created using the stack.

And, I randomly chose a winner to receive one each of the 17 patterned papers.

The 16th comment was from Carissa, but she didn't leave me any way of contacting her.

Anonymous said...

I have the big collection of MME I got from Costco that could really use some whittling down. Also ancient brown/blue and brown/pink Cosmopolitan collections from Making Memories (I think). Love the colors of the MME you bought!
Carissa
January 25, 2010 8:54 PM

So, Carissa, if you are reading this, please contact me w/ your info and I will send these out to you. If I don't hear from her then I will choose another winner.

{More} Winter Wishes.

2010-02-03T10:36:00.000-05:00

A couple months ago, I was fortunate enough to be able to work with some Copic markers through Scrapbook News and Review online magazine. I had never tried them before (which is exactly the staffers they wanted), and was thrilled. Here is one of the cards I created using the earth set of Copics. I'm not much of a stamper, cardmaker, and am not used to coloring images, but I was pretty pleased with the result.

Tip: If you want to create the illusion of having colored a white image, simply outline it with a light grey or light blue (depending on the look you're going for). For these snowmen, I chose to outline them with a soft blue, and it adds the perfect touch to the images.

As a sidenote, does anyone use wordpress? If so, what do you like/dislike about it?

Winter Wonderland

2010-02-02T10:17:00.000-05:00

It has been a winter wonderland around here. Even with the warmer temps and rain we still have some snow that is hanging out. I like it. And, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to share some wintery layouts. I made these for Scrapbook News and Review online magazine using SEI's Wintersong line. I've never been a huge SEI fan, but this line is just gorgeous!

I hope you're all having a great week! And, I haven't forgotten about the paper giveaway. I will be posting my first couple of layouts along w/ the winner of that RAK drawing sometime this week. In the meantime, feel free to head back to that entry and leave me your suggestions :)

Meal Planning

2010-02-01T09:12:00.001-05:00

I decided to start sharing these on my blog as well. If you've never really heard/thought about meal planning before, here is a blog with some great info and ideas about it: MenuPlanning Monday. Basically, I make our family a little menu. I do it twice a month, because that's when Chad gets paid. Here are some of the reasons I make meal plans:

1. Save money because (1.) You can plan your menus based around sales if you want to and (2.) you won't over buy as much and you'll have a specific purpose for everything that you purchase.

2. Save time because you can plan better. Remember to prep meals that need a bit of prep, but save time in the long run (like crock pot meals...they are simple, and don't require a lot of prep, but not a last minute meal, you have to plan for it).

3. Save stress because you don't have those 5:00 "What's for dinner" moments that happen daily in my house otherwise. I love sitting down to plan my meals all at once and then not having to think about it as much afterwards. It's also great for trying out new recipes, you can just add those into your menu. You can also plan your menu to account for busy times. Sundays at lunch time are always hard for us because we get home from church at around 12:30-1:00. So, on those days I either plan a crockpot meal that can cook all morning while we're gone, or I plan something on Saturday that will make good leftovers (pork roast turned into stew or bbq, etc.)

And, with just a little bit of prep, you can freeze meals so that you can have no prep, healthy meals available to your family. And, if something comes up and your plans change now and then, it's no biggie.

Another tip I learned the hard way is to account for leftovers. For one of my menus, Chad looked at it and laughed at me for scheduling "leftovers" from the previous day. But, you have to eat them sometime! lol. In my first menus I got a little overzealous and planned a complete new meal for lunch and supper every day. That didn't work out very well because we ended up with a ton of leftovers and some things that were ruined/wasted, etc. So, account for leftovers, even if you do something different with them.

We're pretty simple around here, but I thought I'd go ahead and share my upcoming menu anyway. Look for some recipes after I get pics to go with them. I usually try out a new recipe at least once a week. Mommyhood is calling me, so I just got through the first week.

Monday:
Lunch--Chicken Noodle Casserole (I'm making this from leftover Cornish Game Hens that we had on Saturday)
Supper--I have night class, so it will be a leftover night for Chad and Caeden. Either chicken noodle casserole or lasagna.

Tuesday:
Lunch: Chicken Parmesan Garlic Bread w/ Salad (this is a simple new recipe I've been wanting to try);
Supper: Pork Roast w/ potatoes & carrots, green beans.

Wednesday:
Lunch: Beef pot pie (this is a quick meal b/c I'm using beef roast leftovers that I froze w/ some broth)
Supper: Pork Stew or pork BBQ sandwiches (using leftover pork roast from Tuesday)

Thursday:
Lunch: BBQ ribs, baked potato, broccoli
Supper: meatloaf w/ green beans & potatoes, mac & cheese casserole. (I have a night class on Thursday as well, so I froze some meatloaf the last time I made it for a quick and easy meal). I can prepare the mac & cheese casserole and then Chad can heat up the rest of it.

Friday:
Lunch: Stir-fry
Supper: Date Night for Chad and me, leftovers for Caeden.

Saturday:
Lunch: Angel hair pasta w/ chicken, broccoli, tomatoes
Supper: Cheeseburgers, homemade french fries, baked beans

Sunday:
Lunch: Spaghetti, salad and garlic bread
Supper: Small Group (appetizers--homemade salsa w/ chips and strawberry cream horn dessert)

A lot of people only plan for supper/dinner, but Chad comes home for an hour lunch nearly every day so I plan for both.

Caramel Corn

2010-01-30T15:11:00.001-05:00

Love this stuff! It's way easier than I thought it would be and a lot better than the kind you buy in stores...always a good combination!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup honey

1 tbsp molasses

1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

10 cups popped popcorn

1 cup peanuts

Directions. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a small saucepan on low heat, melt butter. Add honey, molasses, vanilla, salt. Turn to high heat and bring to a boil. Boil for approx. 30 seconds. Pour mixture over prepared 10 cups of popcorn and mix until popcorn is coated. Spread covered popcorn onto rimmed cookie sheets and bake at 300 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

For a fun gift, buy some cone shaped icing bags. Fill each bag with approximately 1.5-2 cups of popcorn, and secure with a ribbon. Enjoy :)

Plain Jane

2010-01-29T09:20:00.000-05:00

Here are a couple of the SNR layouts that I was telling you all about. These layouts were a real challenge to me. There was a small mix-up in the SNR office and I was sent those red alphas and a sheet of rub-ons from KaiserCraft but no paper. I wasn't allowed to use any competing patterned paper, and I didn't have time to get the Kaiser Craft paper for myself. So, it was cardstock only.

I tried to use similar colors to the Christmas Celebration line in this first layout (again, of my best friend's daughter, Kaelyn. You can see the journaling strips are blank so that Leslie can fill in her own journaling). You can't really tell from this shot, but there is a mild background pattern lightly stamped on the pink cardstock.

For this layout, I snuck in a small piece of that red checked paper from SEI's Wintersong collection (which I was also working with). But, the alphas and those stars and the word "joy" from the rub-ons worked perfectly for this boy layout.

Remember to go back a few days and leave me a suggestion for some older lines to work with.

Getting Organized

2010-01-28T08:42:00.000-05:00

I'm trying to get organized, and in doing that am trying to make some realistic goals for the future. Here are some things that I need to remember right now:

1. Not every photo needs to be printed and scrapbooked. I know this is old news to most of you, but I'm just now catching up. I don't scrap chronologically, but I do organize my albums that way. To help myself in this, I keep my layouts stacked neatly until they are ALL finished from a particular year, and then I place them in my albums. So, it has been really bothering me that I am not finished with 2008 yet, and that I have lots of pictures that I don't know what to do with and lots of layouts just sitting on shelves. Part of the problem is that I had so many pics from 2008 that were bad pictures, no story to go with them, etc. and they just didn't inspire me. Instead, they stressed me out. I went through them the other day and took out over 300 pictures that I'm never going to do anything with. Hopefully now I have a manageable amount and can get a handle on my 2008 situation.

2. The fact that I have over 300 pics that I'm not going to do anything with should give you an idea of the sheer volume of pics that I have. This year, I want to be more responsible w/ my picture ordering.

Anyway, that's all from me today. Hopefully I will have something creative to share tomorrow :)

Creative Dry Spell.

2010-01-27T09:02:00.000-05:00

Anyone else went through a creative dry spell? I have cut back on my DT's so I now design for 2 different kits, on a rotating basis, so every other month for each kit. I'm finding that I got so used to having deadlines to meet that it's actually hard for me to get in my room and work without that extra push. Has anyone else had that experience? It's part of the reason I'm doing my old-stash thing on my blog, because it will give me a deadline, even if it is self-imposed.

Mommy duties are calling me at the moment, so I'm going to have to cut this post short, but I do want to leave you with a layout that I can finally share from a spotlight we did over at Scrapbook News and Review magazine. The adorable little girl is my best friend Leslie's daughter. The picture is so cute and I thought the colors just worked perfectly with Melody Ross's GCD line that released back in the fall.

And, I have a few more SNR layouts that I did at the end of December that I can almost share and I'm really excited about that :) So look for them in the next week or so, using some gorgeous SEI wintery papers.

Use your stash (& a little giveaway)

2010-01-25T08:56:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I have a little story. I have been drooling over this MME stack at hobby lobby. I don'ot go there very often, but when I do, this stack always catches my eye. But, I wouldn't let myself buy it. Why? Because I have SOOO many such stacks/collections that I have added to my stash, just had to have, and then never touched.

But, I had some cash for Christmas and it was on sale for 50% off. So I made a little bargain with myself and my use-your-stash challenge for myself was born. Here is my plan. Each month, I am going to choose a collection that has been in my stash for at least 1 year. I'm going to make myself a little kit out of it, and use it to create as many layouts as possible.

First though, I'm going to start with my new MME stack. I just love the colors and patterns :)

Also, since there were multiples of all the 17 patterns, I'm going to have a little giveaway. So, simply leave a comment with some older lines that you would like to see featured with new ideas. And, I will draw a winner for these 17 glittered papers. A small note though, these were glued together kind of sloppily at the top, so the top edge is kind of rough on some of them, but could easily be cut off.

There were 3 of each design, so if I get at least 50 comments w/ suggestions, then I will have 2 winners.

Coconut Delight Recipe.

2010-01-23T09:22:00.001-05:00

Like most of the recipes I share, this is completely made up. It was brought about because I was in the middle of making a Mississippi Mud Cake, and then realized that I didn't have any cocoa. I always have cocoa, but not this time. Anyway, I decided to throw some things in there so I wouldn't waste the batter that I had already mixed. Chad named it. I told him the name was misleading because the coconut is such a small part of it. He said that the chocolate chips could be the "delight" part so it worked. lol.

Also, I've only made this one time. I guess the batter was pretty thin so all the chocolate chips sank down to near the bottom, which I didn't really expect to happen, but I was still pleasantly surprised with the taste. Anyway, the point of that is that I haven't tried this recipe again to see if there are any kinks. I plan to try it with different types of chips too, or maybe even a combination of chocolate, butterscotch, peanut butter, etc. I normally don't like coconut, but I thought it added the perfect touch to this dessert.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened.
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 pkg mini chocolate chips
1-1/3 cups coconut

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease the bottom and sides of a 13"x9" pan. Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Combine flour, salt, baking powder and add to the mixture; mix well. Stir in mini-chocolate chips. Pour batter into pan. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Top cake with coconut. Turn oven to broil and bake w/ coconut for about 1 minute or until coconut is browned, watching closely so it doesn't overcook.

Make your own Kit :)

2010-01-22T10:21:00.001-05:00

Today was my day this week to post on the AWDML DT Blog. So, I decided to talk about one of my new favorite things to do--making my own kits. There are several benefits to doing this:

1. They are perfect for taking to crops. Simply put everything together in a little bag, and you have all of your necessities without packing your entire scrapbook room.

2. Breathe new life into old supplies. Have some old papers or embellies that you still love but just haven't found the perfect use for? Add them to a kit. Combining them with the latest and greatest can be just what you need for some refreshed inspiration.

3. Break out of a rut. When I'm scrapping, I find myself reaching for the same old things on nearly every layout. Pins and other metal embellies get forgotten in my house, as does chipboard, clear embellies, and usually felt. I just have my go-to embellies, and don't differ from that very often. In putting together a kit, I can really open up all my drawers and containers and consider everything in my stash.

So, what makes a perfect kit? Well, that is entirely up to you. But, here is my process:

Patterned Paper--First things first. I start all of my kits with patterned paper. For this kit, I used October Afternoon and some Basic Grey Origins. I get my color scheme from the patterned paper and just pull colors from the patterns for the rest of my cardstock/embellies.

Cardstock--Add in a few sheets of patterned paper. I usually include a couple neutrals (black, white, kraft) as well as some complementary colors.

Alphabet--Self explanatory :)

Elements--Stickers or chipboard that coordinates with the kit. For this kit, Basic Grey made it easy on me and I included the Origins cardstock element stickers.

Journaling--In most of my kits, I like to include some kind of journaling spots. For this one, I chose some Jilibean Soup Kraft circle journaling spots.

Bling--Be it stickles, gems, glitter, glitter stickers, etc...I always need some form of bling :)

Ribbon--Sometimes I use felt, paper borders, ric rac, etc. But there is always some form of ribbon or border.

Extras--Those little embellies that bring it all together. The details. Buttons, brads, flowers, metal pins, random chipboard pieces, etc. I'm sure I'm forgetting some things but you get the idea.

Finally, here is the kit I assembled:

Hopefully I can get some time in my craft room soon and can post some layouts that I make using this kit :) And, if anyone just falls in love with it, I have created a wishlist at AWDML where you can purchase the components of this kit. Although, the ribbons and buttons are just from my stash, and there are some etsy goodies from evalicious (LOVE her shop!)

Finally, I am so glad today is Friday!!! And, I'm happy to report that I can now see the floor in my scrapbook space! Yeah, it was that bad. Now all I have to do is some finishing touches and I'll be ready to scrap again :) And, hopefully by the beginning of February I can start to share my use-your-stash plans that I talked about at the end of last month :) I haven't forgotten, just got sidetracked by a lack of mojo.

Anyway...hope everyone has an awesome weekend!

Pleated Ribbon Flower

2010-01-20T10:44:00.001-05:00

Here is the tutorial that I promised like a month ago. Better late than never though, right? Anyway, here is another layout that I created using my lovely kit from Jen's House of Scrap. The site has been experiencing technical difficulties, so if you are so inclined, you can find us on facebook.

The December kit had some beautiful pleated ribbon, which I used to make the flower on this layout. This is the beautiful family of our very best friends (minus baby Ethan who wasn't around yet). Since I am making these pages for Kaelyn's scrapbook, I left the journaling spot open for Leslie to write in her thoughts.

Here is a quick and easy tutorial for the flower.

Step 1. Place adhesive on one end of the front side of your ribbon.

Step 2. Adding adhesive where necessary, wrap the ribbon around itself in a gentle spiral shape. I added adhesive to the bottom front of the ribbon, and it held really well.

Step 3. Keep wrapping it around until you get the size you'd like. The beauty of it is that it is really customizable and makes a great dimensional element for your layout or project. When you are finished, simply snip the ribbon and secure with adhesive. I added a pearl gem to the center. Easy peasy :)

Has anyone seen my missing mojo?

2010-01-19T10:45:00.001-05:00

My creative mojo is totally missing. I think it is lost somewhere in the midst of the huge mess that is my scrapbook area right now and the 7 months worth of unprinted pictures currently hanging out on my desktop. Yeah, you read that right--7 months. I haven't printed pictures, except for a couple here and there for assignments since June. Yes, that means that I have virtually NO printed pictures or layouts done of Logan. The hinderance here is that I have so many great, fun pictures and so many great ideas. But, the first step is to actually print the pictures.

Anyway, I did manage to get this layout finished for AWDML. This is totally corny, but something that I had to document. We always call Caeden our "little bear." When he gets tired he "wallers" (otherwise known as "wallows" to some of you) like crazy. So, Chad started calling him his little kowaller bear. Maybe one of those things that you have to be us to appreciate, but that's what scrapbooking is all about, right? Also, I'm loving this monstrosity line from Sassafras.

And, speaking of Sassafras...I've been trying to avoid the CHA new releases, being that I'm kinda broke and scrapbooking isn't so much a necessary expense. But, I did catch a peek of some new Sassafras lines, and they are super-de-duper cute!

Oh yeah, forgot to mention...this is my 300th post!

Some pictures and a little prayer request...

2010-01-18T07:30:00.003-05:00

Some of you may remember that Logan had a bit of a rocky start and spent the first week of his life in the NICU after having seizures and some other problems. First of all, I am happy to report (if I haven't already), that he is doing everything as an almost 6 month old baby should, and we praise God for that!

Here is the prayer request: Since he had seizures, he has been taking Phenobarbitol (sp?), and the neorologist doesn't think he'll have any more problems so what he said was for us to give him the same dosage for 6 months letting him outgrow that dosage, which would essentially be weaning him from the medicine. He will be 6 months old this week, so I would love for you all to say a quick prayer for him that he will not have any more problems with seizures after he stops taking his anti-seizure meds this week.

And, here are some pictures. These are actually a couple months old now, they were taken in late November on one of the last warm days we had. Logan is such a HAPPY baby! He is always happy and smiling :) My friend from church said that when God touched him to heal him, He also must have given him joy and I think I agree.

Hodge Podge Chicken Pie

2010-01-16T09:58:00.000-05:00

Hodge Podge Chicken Pie

1 Cup chicken, cooked and diced or pulled

1 Can Mixed Vegetables

1 can Cream of Chicken soup, undiluted

1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash

1/4 tsp Salt

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup milk

1 cup buttermilk biscuit mix

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, combine chicken, mixed vegetables, soup, and spices. Mix until the soup coats everything. Pour into 9" pie plate. In another bowl, combine egg, milk and biscuit mix. Stir just until ingredients are mixed together. Pour over chicken mixture. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until brown.

****************

This is a really quick and easy dish that was also yummy and a great way to use up leftovers. This is one of those recipes that is really easy to play around with. I actually changed up the recipe to match what I had on hand. I used turkey instead of chicken. I didn't have a can of mixed veggies so I threw in 1/2 can of corn, a couple of potatoes cooked and cubed, and some leftover green beans and carrots from my fridge. It still turned out great :)

Notice anything new???

2010-01-14T20:23:00.001-05:00

Okay, first of all, I have a confession to make. My scrapspace is officially a disaster area. It's to the point where I am avoiding it and it is definitely not conducive to creating. I'm hoping to get a chance to fix that soon.

In the meantime though, I did make it in there yesterday to do something that I have been planning to do for a long time--I made myself a real header for my blog!!! I'm ridiculously excited about it. I'm a little disappointed with the way the words at the bottom don't really show up and I"m going to re-do them with a different color of stickers I guess so you can read them better, because my bigger plan is to have those link to their respective categories in my blog for easy navigation and finding things.

Anyway, I've always just had the blogger "scrapper mom" plain header, so I'm excited to have a pretty one :)

Get a little girlie :)

2010-01-14T13:55:00.000-05:00

Living with a house full of boys, I always jump at the chance to use some pink and frilly stuff. It's all so pretty and I'm always looking for excuses to create. I got that chance with some gorgeous new products from Jenni Bowlin. I created these projects for Scrapbook News and Review Magazine for a manufacturer spotlight/event back in early December. It was great to work with the girl, pink, baby, and black/red collections.

And, the pictures are of my best friend Leslie's gorgeous little girl, Kaelyn and her big brother Blake.

Also, I haven't submitted anything for publication in forever (except to SNR, obviously when I was a staffer), but I was browsing the other day and saw that Creating Keepsakes has a bunch of new page calls posted so I might just give it a shot. I sent one off this morning before I could lose my nerve. Not holding my breath, but you have to submit before you can get picked up, right?

Hope you're all having a great week. I am back in the swing of things and starting up my final 2 classes of graduate work! So exciting.

Snow Day, and an awesome DT Call...

2010-01-13T09:30:00.000-05:00

So, I'm a little sad about it, but my term designing for A Walk Down Memory Lane is coming to a close. But, that is fantastic news for all of you wonderful designers because they are having a DT through the 19th. You can find all the details HERE. But, it has been a fabulous DT to work with! The best part is that rather than receiving an assortment of items from the store chosen for you, you receive an allowance each month to choose your own items! And, if you order anything on top of that, there is a very generous discount. It really is a sweet deal, because you never have to worry about getting stuff that is difficult to work with every month. Lisa has a well-stocked store also, so that is just icing on the cake and she is a super nice person!

And, I promised some snow pictures. We had a great time. We got a few inches of snow, which is the biggest snow we've had in years. It was frigid cold, but we still got out and went sledding down our big ole hill. Here are a couple pics, enough to show the whole family. If you're on my facebook, you've probably already seen them, along with several more. If you aren't, feel free to add me :) I've been having fun with posting things and chit-chatting with people I know IRL who I wouldn't normally get a chance to talk to, KWIM?

Finally, here are some projects that I haven't yet shared here. A few months ago, I had the pleasure of working with this kit from KNK. I think it was their August or Sept. kit. Anyway, to be honest it was a bit of a challenge for me, but I was excited to create a few projects that I was pleased with still :)

And, I should add that as of a couple weeks ago I have made the decision to no longer work with SNR. A lot of thought went into the decision and there are several factors that influenced my decision, not the least of which is my desire to simplify my commitments a bit.

I hope you all are having a wonderful week! Also, please remember the people of Haiti and the various missions who have been affected by the major earthquake which hit Haiti yesterday.

Cinnamon Roll Biscuits

2010-01-09T09:49:00.002-05:00

I got the idea for this in a magazine, so I tweaked my biscuit recipe a bit and was quite pleased with the result. Making yeast bread early in the morning for breakfast is a bit much for me, but this I can handle.

Cinnamon Roll Biscuits

Biscuit Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1 cup milk

Filling ingredients:
1 tbsp butter melted
1 tbsp milk
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Icing Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 tsp vanilla extract
31/2-4 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 Degrees.

1. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
2. Cut in butter and mix until dough is crumbly.
3. Stir in milk, forming dough.
4. Turn out dough onto floured surface and knead until smooth.
5. Roll dough into a long rectangle, approximately 15"x8"
6. For filling, combine melted butter and milk, spread over the top of rolled out dough, moistening the surface.
7. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle on top of rolled out dough.
8. Gently roll dough up, creating a long roll. Cut roll into approximately 20 pieces.
9. Place cut pieces onto greased cookie sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.

Meanwhile, prepare icing:
1. Soften butter, and stir in vanilla. Add powdered sugar, mixing well. Stir in milk.

******
And, a little disclaimer--I am not used to sharing recipes or measuring things, so I'm still learning about how to write a real recipe. Feel free to ask any questions if something is unclear.

A bunch more projects :)

2010-01-08T11:48:00.000-05:00

Today, I am sharing another kit. Many of you know that I design for A Page in Time kits on a rotating basis (every other month). This kit is patterned paper based, and it's a 3-in-1 kind of kit. Each month, there are 3 different collections featured, all for $32.99 (one-time purchase) or $28.65 if you subscribe. Anyway, I usually spread the love a little and separate the kits out on my blog, but this month I decided to share it all together to show you just how much you can do with a single kit. Every single project you see was created with this kit. I added alphas to one of the single page layouts, and I added the calendar pages for my calendar. Other than that everything is included in the kit for all of these projects.

A little Secret...

2010-01-07T09:26:00.000-05:00

I've been keeping a little secret! An exciting one, too. Paper Posies invited me to be their guest designer for January!!! If you visit the site, you'll see what made me so excited about it...the kit is FABULOUS! Every single month that I looked at was just beautiful. It is stuffed full of gorgeous papers and new products. Here is the January kit that I worked with:

When I first started unpacking the box, I thought, Oh no...this kit is girlie. Which is bittersweet because I LOVE girlie, but have a house full of boys, and there are only so many "me" pages to be done. lol. But, after looking closer, there are so many NON-girlie things in the kit as well, making it absolutely perfect! It's great for girl or boy pages, and that's awesome.

And, here are the pages that I made using the kit. I created ALL of these projects and the only thing I added was stickles to the first one, some alpha stickers on the "little drummer boy layout," and some brown ink wich doesn't even really count. Everything else on all of these projects is straight from the kit :)

Yummy Italian Breadsticks...

2010-01-06T15:57:00.001-05:00

One of the things I want to share more of on this blog is recipes. I love to cook and I love to try out new recipes, although I almost always alter them to our tastes (similar to the way I "scraplift"...couldn't let a post go by w/out mentioning scrapbooking now could I???).

Anyway, I've been looking for a recipe for some soft breadsticks and with some alterations this one was a winner for our family. As I share a picture I want to say that I was kinda lazy in shaping this dough into sticks, so they aren't that "pretty".

Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
1 package (or 2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast (quick rise)
3 tbsp soft butter
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1 teaspoon Italian Herb
3 cups all-purpose flour

Topping:
4 tbsp butter, melted.
2/3 tsp garlic salt
1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

1. Add yeast to warm water. Allow this mixture to set for 5 minutes.
2. Stir in butter, salt, sugar, and italian herb seasoning.
3. Work in 3 cups flour. Turn dough out onto floured surface and knead for approximately 3-4 minutes or until it starts getting smooth.
4. Cover and let rise for approximately 20 minutes, or until doubled
5. Punch down dough and divide into 2 portions. Cut each portion into 12 pieces, and shape each of these pieces into 4"-6" ropes (for a total of 24 breadsticks).
6. Cover and let rise for approximately 20 minutes.
7. Bake at 350 Degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Halfway through baking, brush with topping (butter mixed with garlic salt), and sprinkle on parmesan cheese.

Some thoughts :)

2009-12-29T18:15:00.000-05:00

I am at my in-laws right now in Illinois, but I couldn't go one more day without posting here! lol. I really love this blog, and as I simplify my life in 2010, my blog is going to become more of a focus. Rather than designing for a lot of other sites and message boards (and online magazines), I am going to be designing for ME. Imagine that. I will be staying on with some of my DT's, but they are going to be ones that I truly enjoy, KWIM? I allowed myself to get to the point where scrapbooking was too much like work and I decided quickly that I didn't want that.

Already, I have some exciting things in the works for this blog and I can't wait to share them all with you. A few things in the near future:
- Some fun news for me, as well as several new projects;
-A tutorial that I did for Jen's House of Scrap;
-A new "use your stash" project that I will be doing on my blog and am very excited aboug.

We have had a FABULOUS Christmas and I have had such a wonderful time with my family. I hope that you can say the same, and I am so looking forward to another year with my blogger friends!

Christmas pics will hopefully be coming soon!

Decking the Halls

2009-12-21T08:58:00.000-05:00

in more ways than one! We're getting ready for Christmas around here and I couldn't be more excited about it! My semester is over at school. I ended up with an A and a B, which I'm satisfied with. I think having two babies while I attend school has cured me of being a perfectionist where grades are concerned and I'm thinking a B isn't too bad. :) Only 2 more classes to go now until I can graduate with my masters degree!!!

Anyway, it's just going to be a great week. I have a few things in the works, but they are all do on the 28th-30th, and will just have to wait until after Christmas. So, this week will be filled with family time, wrapping gifts, baking, and fun stuff like that :) I just love this time of year and was determined this year to enjoy it. Plus, we've scheduled a last minute shopping trip with my mom and two sisters and I on Tuesday afternoon. We're going to hit a couple of stores for last minute gifts and go out to eat together. I'm ridiculously excited about it because even though we don't live too far away, we don't really get together that often like this, so it will be fun.

I have also been working with Jen's kit this month from Jen's House of Scrap. It is a FABULOUS kit!!! I added on both of the add-on kits (a tag kit and an ABC kit), so for $35, here is what you could get--lots of fun stuff in here!

And, here are some of my projects with it. I also have a super cute flower tutorial coming with another layout as soon as I can get that finished. Maybe tomorrow or Wednesday.

When I saw those chipboard houses along with the BG eskimo kisses, I just knew that I had to make a little Christmas village, and I'm actually pleased with the way these turned out.

The thing I love about this kit is that it is so versatile! The contents are definitely Christmas, but they can be used for so much more. Here are a few non-Christmas things. This first layout is of my best friend's daughter at her first birthday. Too cute! I left some plain white in the bottom corner so she could journal.

Another non-Christmas project. For some reason, some of the papers in this kit just reminded me of a sunset, and I ran across this picture when I was looking through pics and knew I had to do something with it. I added black cardstock to complete the matted photo. I'm going to frame this to hang on the wall.

This is one of my favorites for a fun reason. See that text paper? It's from the Collage Press line. Well, I just decided randomly to start reading the text, and was thrilled to find that it is an excerpt from one of my favorite novels--Pride & Prejudice! It was a fun moment for an English student :) I almost didn't want to cut up the paper, but I did anyway.

And, here is another Christmas layout. I just LOVE the great mix of vintage colors in this kit with the Collage Press and the Cosmo Cricket in the tag add-on.

And, that's it for now, but remember be sure to check back later for at least one more layout and a SUPER easy flower tutorial using the beautiful gathered ribbon from the kit.

2009-12-16T09:53:00.000-05:00

We did some Christmas Shopping last night and I also got to go spend the last of my credit at the scrapbook store (I got it from a Consignment sale they had in Sept/Oct). They were having a sale and if you spent 50+, you got 25% off your order...lucky me, I had just enough credit left to meet that amount :) So, I got lots of fun goodies.

I'm also planning a purchase that will be pretty major for me and I would never ordinarily buy myself, but I just happen to be taking a class where I can use it. So, I will be purchasing Adobe Creative Suite 4!!! I'm taking a class in Visual Rhetoric and we're going to be learning digital design! How sweet is that for me to get to learn digital design AND get graduate credit for it :) I'm really excited. And, since I am a student, I can purchase the student edition of the software for like $349, as opposed to the regular retail price of around $1799! Anyway, I'm excited for this little splurge that school has given me an excuse for. I would never have bought it otherwise. I'm definitely looking forward to learning though. I only hope I have the patience for it! And, with learning to create, I intend to be making a lot more sketches, which I love to do.

I got a GREAT package in the mail Monday from Jen's House of Scrap!!! I am SOOOO looking forward to playing with it and will be posting all my creations later this week. It really is gorgeous though, and I'm super excited.

For now though, since I can't post w/out adding in something creative, I will leave you with these super easy cards that I made for a friend. She asked for 6 Christmas cards with trees and a star on top and this is what she got. She was really pleased with them so that made me happy :) You can find instructions for this card on the DT blog over at A Walk Down Memory Lane. This project was a part of our 12 Days of Christmas over there. You still have until the 24th to submit your own projects to win a prize.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Holiday season!!!

Fun Stuff.

2009-12-14T11:04:00.000-05:00

The key for the holidays for me is to ENJOY it all without getting so wrapped up and stressed out by the business. That has been a real struggle for me, as I have been incredibly busy. We had a great weekend, but very busy. Saturday, our church took a meal to the Ronald McDonald House. That place was such a blessing to us and it was an honor for us to be able to turn that around and bless the families who are there now.

Yesterday, we had a wonderful church service and then after church we went to my mom's for lunch and to decorate their Christmas tree. It was nice to visit and all that good stuff. Then, I came home and baked a Mississippi Mud Cake to take to our small group. We aren't meeting next week, so we had a little Christmas party last night and it was a great time of yummy food and good fellowship :)

And that brings me to today. It's the last week of classes. Finals week. I have 2 term papers and 2 final exams due this week, 3 of which are due today. I also have 2 very fussy, whiny babies today. YIKES! I keep telling myself that after this week, it will be over for a while, because the Spring term doesn't start until the middle of January.

Nothing crafty to share today, but here is a pic of one of my platters of cookies I made last weekend, which was Holiday Baking.

I also can't leave without saying that I just can't believe how FAST December is flying by!!!

Christmas Layouts :)

2009-12-11T08:50:00.000-05:00

Over at SNR Magazine, we have been featuring a TON of manufacturers lately, and a lot of the stuff we've been working with has been Christmas. So much fun because I love all things Christmas :)

Here are some layouts that I created using Karen Foster's beautiful Christmas collection.

Missing Project...

2009-12-08T15:29:00.000-05:00

Okay, I'm a total ditz. Apparently I forgot to upload my project the other day! lol. Anyway, here it is for real. I made some homemade hot cocoa and stuck it in a little baggie and then made this little package for it. There is a tutorial over at SNR, complete with score marks and all that for creating the holder. And, can I just say that I LOVE this Graphic 45 line!!! I'm usually not a fan of G45, but this Christmas line is just gorgeous. I also used Stewart Superior hybrid ink, and Technique Tuesday Ali Edwards stamp.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

2009-12-05T15:05:00.000-05:00

We are definitely getting into the Christmas spirit around here. Yesterday, I got all the Christmas decorations and such out of the closet. The "closet" is actually a pantry that we use for regular storage instead of as a pantry, so it's huge and full, and the Christmas stuff was in the back, so getting it all out was quite a feat, but still fun.

This weekend is all about Christmas things and I'm loving it! Today, I have set aside the day for some Christmas baking, and I'm going to making a bunch of yummies and making up platters of Christmas cookies and candy to take to people. Then tonight we are going to decorate our tree. Tomorrow is the Christmas party for the women's group at church. I am sooo excited about that!

All in all I just LOVE this time of year :) Here is a little Christmas project for you. I created this for Scrapbook News and Review magazine using Graphic 45. I LOVE this line!!! If you'd like to see instructions, head on over to the magazine forums to see the class thread for this.

December 4th

2009-12-04T09:06:00.000-05:00

Yikes! Did I really only blog once this week?! The week has flown by. It has been a good one though. I have teased my husband because his birthday (which is Dec. 2), kinda lasted all week long! We had a birthday dinner for him on Tuesday, then his birthday was Wednesday, his gift from me came in the mail yesterday (a day late!), and he got a gift card from his mom to outback that we are going to use tonight! lol.

As far as crafty things goes, most of what I have been working on lately is stuff that I can't quite show you guys yet because it's still over at SNR :) Here is a Bo Bunny project though. I just LOVE this line. I'm already 27 now, my birthday was in October.

Also, I'm still working on getting the stuff together for my giveaway, so I can't show you that just yet. If you'd like to be entered, go back one entry and leave me your favorite holiday traditions :)

12 Days of Christmas!!!

2009-12-01T17:35:00.002-05:00

Welcome to the Scrapbook News and Review Magazine 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!!! There will be lots of fun stuff posted over the next 12 days and I am SO excited to be starting things off :)

I love the holidays. Christmas really is my absolute favorite time of the year, and this year I am determined to document some of those traditions. Yep, I'm making my very own version of a December Daily album. I already have a ton of ideas for things to put in there. I'm not going to commit to a picture or "entry" every day, but I do want to make this conscious effort to treasure the time.

It's a little flat now without all of the inner page decorations, but here is the cover of it. Some of you may remember this is actually my second December album. I also did one using MLYB, and offered it up as an RAK...it ended up going to Lisa who won the drawing for donating to our Relay for Life team, and I can't wait to see what she does with it.

Here is the new one that I am going to use, made with Making Memories' Christmas line, Mistletoe from A Walk Down Memory Lane.

Here are some of the things I plan to include:

-Countdown Calendar fun
-Christmas parties
-Christmas lights at the KY Horse Park and/or around town.
-Christmas cards sent/received
-Hot Cocoa
-Christmas music
-Stockings
-Decorating for Christmas
-Trimming the Tree
-Christmas tree lit up by the fireplace...so serene
-Wrapping gifts
-Christmas baking
-Chad's birthday (Dec. 2)
-Logan's first Christmas
-Christmas pics of our family
-Christmas Eve w/ my extended family
-Reading the Christmas story on Christmas Eve
-Christmas morning w/ our family
-Travelling to Illinois to visit w/ Chad's family on Dec. 26th and on

I know there will be other things that come up, but those some of our family traditions that I will for sure include.

And, speaking of family traditions...this year we are starting a brand new one...a countdown calendar :) It's not really a countdown calendar because I put the numbers in order, but you get the idea. There are some little treats in each box and I'm really excited to let Caeden open it each day, starting TODAY!!! This was created as a section of the Karen Foster event over at Scrapbook News and Review Magazine :)

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Finally...in the interest of learning more about YOUR Holiday traditions, I am going to be offering up a HUGE giveaway...I will post the details later because I don't have the prize pack together yet, but it will be at least $100 worth of scrapbook goodies :) I'm posting now so that more people can have a chance to be entered. All you have to do is leave a comment with your family's favorite holiday tradition :) I can't wait to read them all.

We have a winner!!! (and some projects)

2009-11-24T09:14:00.001-05:00

First of all, thanks so much to everyone who donated to my family's Relay For Life team!!! I know that money is tight all around right now, but this cause is near and dear to me and I really appreciate your support as well!

The winner of the Christmasy mini-album is....Lisa T. Howard :) So, email me your address and I will get that to you asap :)

I can't believe Thanksgiving is only 2 days away. It's bittersweet for me though because we're going to Illinois for Thanksgiving, which means the first Thanksgiving ever away from my family. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little sad about it.

I am really excited for Chad though because he's really looking forward to it and, his brother Steve, who lives in Vegas, hasn't seen Caeden since he was 4 months old and hasn't seen Logan ever.

Now for something crafty...here are some more of the projects that I created using Lost Coast Designs stamps. These projects are specifically using a music note border.

For this first layout, I used MME oo-la-la papers, and I used a Fiskars border punch around the edge to get that frilly border, which ended up being just perfect for this page. My journaling strips are crooked but it was too late, so I'll deal with it I guess.

For these 2 cards, I used Basic Grey's Wassail line from last Christmas. I got it and then never used it, so I pulled it out with these stamps. The poinsettia in the first card was made by tracing a poinsettia that I had (the color didn't really work), and handcut it out.

Happy Monday

2009-11-23T06:56:00.000-05:00

Monday is a little happier when it's a short week!

The New issue of Scrapbook News and Review Magazine debuted last night at 8:00 pm. Great issue! The sketch section had been waning a bit, so we are revamping it, and I got the pleasure of working with that. We are really playing up the diversity of interpretations. We have a sketch for different sizes, different styles, different levels of embellishment, and cards. I am really excited about it!

My new budget column is going to start with the next issue and I am super excited about that as well :)

Here is a bright and cheery layout that I created at the online crop last weekend at From Here 2 Scrapternity. I scraplifted one of Alecia's great layouts, and came up with this. I love the happiness of this Sassafras line.

Journey of Motherhood, etc.

2009-11-20T12:47:00.000-05:00

I am SOOO behind on printing my pictures. The last pics I printed were from JUNE! I printed a hand full back in September so I could make a mini-album about Logan's birth, but other than that I haven't printed any since then. That is going on 5 months worth of pictures!!! Insane. Now I need to go through and purge them, which will be a good thing. I always end up printing way too many of the same event, including the ones that aren't so great and I don't end up doing anything with them so they just sit in my craft room, a waste of money, space, and resources. I want to avoid that.

Also, this is kind of random, but maybe putting it out there will help motivate me to keep on track. I am determined to get healthy. I am not necessarily going on a "diet" in the typical sense. I just want to be healthier. I have a history of heart disease, diabetes, high cholesterol, etc. in my family and I really need to take that seriously and take care of myself more, KWIM? Now is a prime time for me to do it because my eating habits directly effects Logan as well.

I got these papers from A Walk Down Memory Lane a while back but hadn't done anything with them yet because I couldn't quite decide what I wanted to do. Finally, I thought that the journey papers would be perfect for a motherhood layout, since I really do feel like motherhood is a constant journey and not so much a destination, KWIM? Anyway, I was pleased with the way this layout turned out :)

Only 1 week until Thanksgiving!

2009-11-19T09:06:00.000-05:00

When we get to this last month or so of the year, I'm always left wondering...where did it go??? I can't believe that Thanksgiving is only a week away! In honor of Thanksgiving, I finally finished creating this Grattitude Box, thanks in part to a challenge over at From Here 2 Scrapternity this weekend to use autumn colors.

I am also planning to create some little cards to go along with it, and have everyone write down something they are thankful for for Thanksgiving. I even thought it is something that we could do all year long and just keep in somewhere in the house, along with the cards, and then we can take them out and read them periodically when we need a little reminder.

The chipboard mailbox is by Maya Road, and the patterned paper/embellishments are mostly from the November Sussies kit.

Stamping Tutorial (from SNR)

2009-11-18T09:38:00.000-05:00

Back in early October, I had the pleasure of working with some Lost Coast Designs stamps for Scrapbook News and Review Magazine. Here is one of the projects I created, along with a little step-by-step of what I did. Head over to the magazine forums to see what the rest of the staff team did with these stamps. There were some fantastic projects.

For this project, I used the small flourish stamp. This stamp is just gorgeous, and gives a great impression every time! The detail on the flowers and flourishes is just exquisite!

Stamp the design on at least 3 different papers. I used cream, green, and pink. I stamped using a Colorbox dark brown ink pad.

Cut around the entire image on what will become your background color. I used the cream paper as my background.

Cut out flowers and adhere them to the base color, using foam adhesive. I made all my flowers be pink.

Using scissors and/or a craft knife, cut out leaves from your third color. Adhere those to the base as well. The different colors and layers add a lot of dimensional interest to your design.

Finally, add a pearl gem to the flower center on the opened flower. To use this image on a card, I matted it to a coordinating paper and added some layered mats to really make that gorgeous flourish shine front and center.

SNR Related stuff--Free Issue winner, Calls, sneak peek, etc.

2009-11-17T09:32:00.000-05:00

First things first...now that the blog hop is officially over, I drew a random winner for the free issue of the magazine. That will be going to Sandy Lewis, who I have already emailed requesting her username so we can get the free subscription set up.

Also, I am working on an article for a new COLUMN that I will have in Scrapbook News and Review Magazine. I am sooo excited about it! Hopefully can share some more details soon :)

This past weekend was the Karen Foster event at Scrapbook News and Review Magazine. Here is a sneak at one of my projects, head over to the forum to check out the rest of them. There were some fantastic projects and classes posted.

Last but not least, here are the scrapbooking calls for the December issue, deadline is November 30th:
By Style* (see special call below)

2 Page Layouts
All I Want for Christmas . . .
My Story
New Year's Resolutions
Using Cuttlebug Embossing Folders
Using the Cricut

send to: subs@scrapbooknewsandreview.com

To see all calls, or for more info, go HERE.

A New Week (And, pics of the boys)

2009-11-16T09:17:00.000-05:00

First of all, THANK YOU to everyone who was a part of, or participated in the Blog Hop! It was a huge success, and a ton of fun!!! I loved hopping around to see everyone's creations and am already looking forward to the next hop!

We had a busy, busy weekend around here. Chad had to work all weekend, so we didn't really see that much of each other. One of the things I did was to take the boys to our best friend's house for a little while on Saturday afternoon. It was nice to visit with Leslie, and Caeden got to play with her kiddos for a while. And, Nelson is a photographer. He was getting his Christmas set all ready and wanted to practice...we were more than happy to oblige (yay for having an easy going baby! lol). Here are some of the great shots he got.

Isn't this cute?!?

I just love the little face Logan is making here.

Caeden did not cooperate AT ALL. But, he found the drums, which Nelson is kind enough to let Chad store in his basement, and wanted to play drums. Already he LOVES anything and everything to do with music. I think this picture looks like a Ralph Lauren ad or something.

I love this one. It's also fitting that he just happened to be wearing his "my dad is my hero" shirt that my mom got him to wear for Father's Day.

That's all for now. I have some crafty things that I have been working on too that I will be sharing this week.

A Faith Perspective Thankful for Friends of Faith Blog Hop!!!

2009-11-14T08:18:00.001-05:00

Welcome to Scrapbook News and Review Magazine's A Faith Perspective Thankful for Friends Faith Blog Hop. Today, we're out in force on the internet -- showing our faith and giving the glory to God. United, we stand as Christian paper crafters and blog owners to make a presence on the internet for all to see. We're celebrating the theme of friends and we're happy to share our projects with you based on the verse:

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. " Ecc4:9-10a

If you're just joining in on the fun, you can find the start of the train here: A Faith Perspective Blog. First, we would like to take a moment to thank our generous co-sponsors: Layers of Color Stamps, Gina K Designs Stamps and Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps. Together with Scrapbook News and Review Magazine, these companies have donated some wonderful prizes for today’s blog hop.

Prizes? Oh, yeah! There will be three lucky grand prize winners for today’s event.

To enter, simply hop to the blogs of all of the participating staff members of Scrapbook News and Review Magazine, take note of the staff member’s name, and leave a comment on their posts. Then send us an email at
games@scrapbooknewsandreview.com listing each of the staff members who participated in today’s hop. It’s that easy. All entries must be received by Monday, November 16, 2009 at 12 noon, EST and three winners will be randomly chosen to win.

You've found the blog of a Scrapbook News and Review Magazine Staff Member. In order to enter our grand prize drawing, be sure to put my name on your list. In addition, I'm giving away a one-month subscription to Scrapbook News and Review Magazine to one lucky visitor of my blog. To win, simply leave a comment on this post with your name and e-mail address. Comments must be left by 12 noon, EST on Monday November 16, 2009. Winners will be chosen at random and notified by e-mail within 48 hours.

What are the prizes?

One $100 gift certificate from Layers of Color Stamps AND a 6 month subscription to Scrapbook News and Review Magazine.

One basket of goodies -- four stamp sets from Gina K Designs and a 6 month subscription to Scrapbook News and Review Magazine.

One set of digital stamps from Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps and a 3 month subscription to Scrapbook News and Review Magazine.

In addition, every participating staff member of Scrapbook News and Review Magazine will offer a free one-month subscription to the magazine to one of their lucky visitors by simply leaving a comment on their blog. That's a lot of chances to win, so let’s get to the Hop!

You've made it to the end of our Blog Hop, and the final stop on the list is: Scrapbook News and Review Magazine

Donate to the American Cancer Society (Blog Candy Involved)

2009-11-11T18:59:00.002-05:00

I think I shared here before that my family has been touched a lot by cancer. So, in memory of those we have lost to cancer, in honor of those who have survived it, and with hope for those who are still fighting the battle we always have a Relay For Life team. It's a fun way to raise money and awareness for a cause that touches nearly everyone.

With that in mind, I am offering up this December mini-album as a raffle of sorts. This album was made for Scrapbook News and Review Magazine. This is just the "sneak peek" of the cover only. The pages are filled with a ton of MLYB yumminess. There are pages of many different shapes and sizes: journaling boxes, clear sheets, chipboard sheets, shaped transparencies, etc. There are enough of them to create a countdown to Christmas album, but the pages are not pre-numbered so if you want to use the album for something else--a gift album, or general Christmas album, you could easily do so.

As a bonus, I will also include a little baggie with some extra embellies to go along with it in case you'd like to add a personal touch.

For each $3.00 donation you make to our team, you will receive 1 entry for the album. I will draw a winner on November 21st, which gives me time to get the album to it's new owner.

Please note, ALL of the money raised is going straight to the American Cancer Society, via our Relay For Life team. I am not keeping any of this money at all.

Also, be watching for some other Christmasy items soon because I am working on and planning several things for this.

Jen's House of Scrap

2009-11-11T06:43:00.000-05:00

I think I already shared this first layout, but I decided to include it again so you could see them together. These are some of the layouts that I created with the October, first kit ever from Jen's House of Scrap. Fantastic stuff here, and she also has 2 mini-album/special edition kits available.

The new November kit debuts on the 15th and it is gorgeous!

Pink Paislee, 15% off

2009-11-10T09:10:00.000-05:00

Pink Paislee is the featured manufacturer over at A Walk Down Memory Lane. I absolutely ADORE their new stuff, so I had no problems whatsoever working with it. The line I chose to work with this month is their "Amber Road" collection, and the papers in this collection are just beautiful! I also love the punch out tags and journaling spots...it's all just fantastic.

And, since it's the featured manufacturer, it is all 15% off this month, which includes the new lines, Amber Road and Mistletoe & Co. (as well as all the rest of the Pink Paislee stuff in the store).

Anyway, here is a card. I created this using a Maya Road singleton stamp set, and of course the Amber Road collection. I stamped the little house and then cut it out, and mounted it on foam adhesive for a bit of dimension, although that is hard to see in this picture.

I just love this picture of my son from back in the spring. I wanted to find a picture that would match the elegance of this line, and I felt like this black and white picture could pull it off. I also created a sketch for the AWDML newsletter and this layout is an example of my sketch. Head over there to check it out :)

Build an Embellishment (tutorial)

2009-11-09T07:00:00.001-05:00

I've been creating like crazy lately, but it's been mostly for SNR manufacturer events, which I can now start sharing a little at a time (as the 30 days pass). This embellishment tutorial was my very first class at Scrapbook News and Review. I had a lot of fun with it. This was also for the Scrap Within Reach event.

Speaking of SNR events, we just had a HUGE one this weekend. A ton of fantastic classes and lots of eye candy, from manufacturers like Technique Tuesday, Stewart Superior, MLYB, Bo Bunny, Glitz Designs, Fancy Pants, G45, etc. Anyway, everything is still up so head over there for some amazing holiday projects.

Anyway, now on to the tutorial for this layout:

When I first got my hands on this paper, so aptly named “The Factory,” I knew right away that I was going to do some fussy cutting to make my own embellishments. The designs were so easy to cut and worked well to make perfect accents and embellishments for my page.

I kept cutting out designs until I had enough to build my embellishments, and then I distressed the edges accordingly. I roughed up the edges of most pieces, and inked the edges of one, as you can see in the photo.

After all of my pieces were ready, I started adding them to my layout, building from the bottom up. I used the larger circle as a base for my title. So, I added the larger circle to the bottom corner of my photo and then placed the title letters on top of that using foam squares for dimension.

After my title was in place, I started adding the rest of the pieces around it as accents. Using more foam squares, I adhered the star to overlap the title, and added the yellow circle to one corner of the star.

I then layered two more circles, adding those above the title, and I added some small rub-ons to the yellow circle. As a finishing touch, I added “blue jean” distressed stickles to the star. And, this completed the embellishment cluster that was centered around my title.

Finally, I added gold stickles to the last cut-out piece—the yellow circle cluster—and added that to my layout using foam squares.

More Holiday Sampler (December Daily Sneak Peek)

2009-11-08T09:06:00.000-05:00

Here is another sneak peek from me. It is the cover of a December Daily/Countdown to Christmas type of album. I am working on setting up a shop and this is going to be one of the things in it :) At least 50% of the purchase price is going to go to the American Cancer Society, via my mom's Relay for Life team.

Anyway, here is the cover, and you can head on over to Scrapbook News and Review to see a sampling of the inner pages. Just go to the forum, and my album is buried on the second page of the MLYB thread for now. It is stuffed full of MLYB goodies.

Holiday Sampler...

2009-11-07T07:45:00.000-05:00

Today is the Holiday Sampler at Scrapbook News and Review. We have a ton of sponsors--lots of great games, challenges, and prizes. And, the staff has been working really hard to put together some fantastic classes and a lot of great eye candy and inspiration. Come and check it out for some out-of-the-box projects and creative ideas for the holidays.

I put together 2 classes for this. The sneak peek below is from my hot cocoa package class, and I also put together a glass ornament class.

Come check it out!!! The fun starts at 1:00 pm EST, with a full schedule until 8:00 pm EST.

Weekend!

2009-11-06T09:29:00.001-05:00

Yay for the weekend :) If you've been reading my blog for a while, then you know that around here we have extra reasons to look forward to the weekend--Friday is date night for hubby and me! And, I got a coupon from Ryan's for a free buffet b/c I'm on their email list so I got it for my birthday, which is always fun :)

Also, Chad's parent's are going to be coming in at some point today for the weekend. It's always nice when they come.

There is going to be a ton of fun this weekend over at Scrapbook News and Review!!! Come get an early start on Holiday Inspiration with our Holiday Sampler. We have great eye candy and classes using Christmas and holiday products from: Technique Tuesday, Bo Bunny, Glitz, Graphic 45, MLYB, Fancy Pants, and more. Check back tomorrow for more info.

Here are a couple of 2-page layouts from me using my A Page In Time kit. If you LOVE patterned paper collections, this is the kit for you. Each month, you'll get a good assortment of papers, along with an embellishment (alpha, tags, cardstock die cuts, etc.)...in 3 diffferent lines. So, it's like getting 3 kits in one and I love it :)

Also, speaking of APIT, we're having a fantastic crop going on this weekend, starting at noon PST today...there are lots of GREAT prizes up for grabs including some complete lines of Basic Grey, and lots of other great stuff.

This first layout was made with MME's Spider's Web. I just love how the halloween lines this year can be used for so much more than halloween.

This is MME's "Ooo-la-la" Don't you just love the name of it??? The papers are just gorgeous, love the color combo, and the punch out tags and journaling boxes with this kit are great as well.

So much going on!

2009-11-05T10:15:00.000-05:00

So, here is what's going on with me:

School--is kicking my butt. The only good thing is that I'm on the downhill slope now...just 6 more weeks of classes and that means only 5 more times of the dreaded Monday night class! I completed my 10-15 page term paper for my Lit Crit class, thanks to my mom who was kind enough to watch the babies for a few hours yesterday. He requires a rough draft so I'm glad to have that out of the way. These next few weeks will be bogged down with papers and presentations, but each out of the way is a huge feeling of relief, and adds to my feeling of confidence that, yes, I can do this. Even better is the fact that next semester one of my classes will be an ONLINE class so I will only have to go to campus one night per week instead of two, which is great.

Babies--everyone is doing great :) Logan is growing by leaps and bounds...he's laughing, and Caeden is talking more and more every day. Caeden has had a cough and runny/stopped up nose, but other than that everyone is healthy, which is a blessing.

Scrapping--I've been super busy creating for SNR lately, and I can finally share a couple of things, so that will come over the next few days. Also, I have a chance to go to an all-day crop on Saturday. It is at the scrapbook store which is 50 miles away, but I have a gift certificate there from when I sold some things in their consignment sale. It's to celebrate their 8th anniversary so there are sales throughout the day and the crop is free. Plus, my mother-in-law will be here so even if Chad has to work, between my mom and her I should have a possible babysitter. We'll see though. It would be the first crop I've done ever since I've had babies. lol. On the other hand though I tend to get more done when I'm at my own house, so we'll see. I may just go shop and then come home and scrap.

Here are some layouts that I created for Scrapbook News and Review. We had a spotlight event for Scrap Within Reach and I got to work with this beautiful line, The Cottage. I cut out the flowers from the paper, and then accented them with Stickles.

For this layout, I added in some red accents to coordinate with his red outfit. These papers were perfect for these dandelion photos though.

Again, I accented the flower with stickles, and cut out a flower center which I mounted with foam adhesive for dimension. I wasn't completely sold on this line when it first came out, but once I played with it I really fell in love with it.

A date with my blog...

2009-11-03T09:37:00.000-05:00

I totally need to start having a nightly date with my blog! I really miss it when I don't get a chance to update, so here I am making time while Caeden is playing in the background. We'll see how this works out :)

I have been so busy lately, but most of what I have been working on I can't really share yet. Here are a couple of things though. I made this layout using some pics from our anniversary last year. It was the first time I had left Caeden overnight. We just stayed at a semi-local hotel for a night, but it was still a nice getaway. I created the layout using the absolutely GORGEOUS Amber Road line from Pink Paislee. Seriously, this is one of my favorite lines to come out in a long time. I made this layout for A Walk Down Memory Lane and all the products I used are available there.

And, here is a sneak peek at another project that I created for a class over at SNR. I actually cheated a little, because it was for the Technique Tuesday event, and I got to work with an Ali Edwards class kit. Great stuff!

Friday already???

2009-10-30T09:29:00.001-04:00

I can't believe this week is over already! My week was consumed with school assignments and it's going to get worse before it gets better. But, another month and a half and the semester will be over.

In more exciting news, Logan laughed for the first time!!! Such a great sound. He's such a happy, happy baby. He's always smiling, and now laughing :) So precious!

Also, the new issue of Scrapbook News and Review is up!!! Go check it out. It's worth the 4.95/month subscription. There is a ton of great stuff going on over there. If you like Glitz Designs, head on over there to check out the spotlight on Glitz. I created several projects for that one. Here is a sneak peek at one of my classes, and the classes are completely free.

I have to be honest and say that I've never really been a huge Glitz fan, but this totally sold me and I had so much fun working with it!

And, finally I have to admit that I am sooo behind in visiting all my favorite blogs! I'm about a week behind in comments and I'm really going to try to get caught up. So, hopefully I'll get to see what's going on with all of you today :)