pink nostalgia

happy halloween with an envelope album!

Hello, All,

How 'bout something festive?  What?  You want to know what an envelope album is?  Alright.  Done.

 

Supplies: Album: Little Yellow Bicycle. Tags: Heidi Grace. Alphas: American Crafts. Ribbon.

This is an envelope album kit from Little Yellow Bicycle.  The directions are pretty easy to follow.  It's just like a regular album, but instead of chipboard or patterned paper for each of the pages, you use envelopes.  You can adhere your photos, journaling, and embellishments to the envelopes just like normal.  All of the journal cards are supposed to go inside of the envelopes, but I punched holes in a few of them and added them to the album.  You can keep all of your extra pictures inside the envelopes and adhere all of your best photos on the outside of the envelopes.  You can also stash journaling and other memorabilia inside the envelopes.  And since this album is bound with metal rings, you can easily add more pages.  You can even punch holes right through your photos and add them as a page (like I did in the Chicago album).

If you're in town, you can swing by Crop Paper Scissors to buy the kit.

FYI, you can also make envelope albums out of regular envelopes that you get anywhere.  I have a Christmas and anniversary album that I'll share in the upcoming appropriate seasons.  : )

Peace out, Homie Gs.

P.S.  Way to go, Bears!!

throwback thursday: nice tree, girl!

This is my aunt Deborah, who I call BB, or Beeb for even shorter.  Cute as a button!

 
photo taken 1977

Nice tree, girl!!

one of my best lists!

and it's scrappy, too!

I made one of my best lists today comparing Ryan from The OC with Logan from Veronica Mars.  I came up with 32 similarities!  Yep, this is what I do while procrastinating.

Another great list - top 30 memories of my friend Angie from my friends and me.  (See the cupcake streamers on the left?)

 
 
Supplies: Patterned paper: Dear Lizzy + American Crafts.  Alphas: American Crafts.  Flower: Heidi Swapp.  Brad: Basic Grey.  Solid paper. 

This is a super easy project and anyone can do it.  I glued a photo to a piece of patterned paper and stuck that onto a second piece of patterned paper.  I added the title to the top.  I had some friends help me with a list of great memories, typed it up, and printed it on color paper.  Cut the list into strips and glue them down onto some patterned paper.  Secure the flower with a brad.  Done and done.

Note that glitter letters are always more fun!

I got the new Taylor Swift and Sara Bareilles albums tonight...so...that's what I'll be doing tomorrow.  : )

Ciao.

Happy Birthday, Angie!

My friend Angie turns 30 today.  Happy birthday, girl!  Here are some of her party highlights.

 
(when Angie saw her family - Surprise!)

 
 
 

 
 

 

Thanks, ladies, for a great night!

how to: make cupcake streamers

Hello friends,

I threw my friend Angie a pseudo-surprise birthday party over the weekend with the help of a few friends.  I was able to throw together some super cute and cheap decorations, i.e. cupcake streamers.  :)

Step 1: Gather up mini cupcake baking cups.  I got these from Wal-Mart, 350 for $3.50. 

 

Step 2: Quickly flatten each cup by pulling opposite sides apart.

Step 3: Run the cups through your sewing machine end to end.

 
 

Step 4: Hang.  :)

 

Step 5: Repeat with multiple colors.

 

Step 6: Repeat again using butterflies or other objects that you punched out of patterned paper (tip: use double-sided paper).

 
 
 

Lovely.  :)

How 'bout I throw in a little somepin' extra?  Dave and I were on our way to Chipotle for lunch today and reminisced over our love of Freebirds by coming up with a little list.  That's right.  :)

Twenty Reasons Why Freebirds Is Better Than Chipotle

1. multiple burrito size options

2. multiple tortilla flavors

3. cool foil art

4. the little warmer they put your burrito in while you order the next one

5. they label your burritos with your name

6. the music stand they use to tell you how long the wait is

6. lime juice

7. meat that isn't SO spicy

8. fresh tomatoes that isn't pico

9. cilantro

10. Spanish rice beats cilantro rice

11. eccentric employees

12. they always ask if this is your first time at Freebirds and walk you through the ordering process

13. the same person takes your entire order when you're the sucker who goes in for the whole family

14. refried beans, baby!

15. superior foil swaddling

16. Texas-based company

17. Mountain Dew

18. drive-thru window

19. sales tax is included in the listed price

20. free sour cream or guac if you pass on the beans (but really, it's totally worth the $0.75)

Thank you, and good night!

throwback thursday: bathroom break

I'm not sure who this is, but I hope everything turned out alright.

 
(found in Mom's box of old photos)

got 'em!

I'm taking a very brief sabbatical from Veronica Mars to post my latest page (okay, that's a lie, I'm doing two things at once).  Moving on...

This was a great holiday memory.  I'm glad I was behind the camera instead of behind the pie.

 
 
 
Supplies: Die cut paper: Creative Imaginations. Flowers: Prima. Brads: Pink Paislee. Eyelets, alphas: American Crafts. Ink: Tim Holtz. Pen: Sharpie. Journal block: Jenni Bowlin.  Ribbon, cardstock.

This one is pretty straight-forward.  I broke out the ink and flowers for the first time in months.  The patterned paper is pretty hard to match, so I just let it stand on its own.  There's nothing to really tie the flowers in, but the colors are all complementary and fall-ish.

Alright, that's enough.  I know what happened with Lilly.  Now, does Veronica end up with Duncan?  And what about the baby??

103 floors high

Hello friends,

We had a pretty great weekend.  Friday, Dave declared that it was dinner-and-a-movie date night, but I'm pretty sure that was just to dupe me into taking him to Panera.  We saw the movie Life As We Know It.  It was much sadder than I anticipated, although I did laugh out loud when he said that children are just like dogs.  (Wait, does that mean I'm not ready for parenthood?)

Yesterday we were invited to the Waco Humane Society's annual Food & Wine Festival, which was basically chips, salsa, wine, and sliders in perfect 85 degree weather while looking at adorable dogs for adoption.   Well worth the free admission.  From there, we partied at the boss's house for the Post-October 15th party.  Friends, fajitas, and chicken foot makes for a hilarious night.   Dave and I were unstoppable at the witty banter and covering the blank.  Of course, that didn't help me on the round when I got stuck with the double.  

And today, I've watched the first half of Season 1 of Veronica Mars, which I don't particularly like but can't seem to stop watching.  Can someone please just tell me if Lilly is really dead, who actually killed her, and if Veronica is Duncan's half-sister?  And what was Lilly's big secret?!?!

Seriously though, don't tell me.  I hate spoilers.  Oh, and are puffer vests still cool?  Veronica wears a lot of them, and I kind of like them.

I'm still coming down from my recent love affair of Chicago.   I printed multiple copies of a few of my favorite shots when I ordered photos for the mini album.

 
 
 
 
Supplies: Patterned paper: Studio Calico, Scenic Route, American Crafts. Chipboard alphas: American Crafts. Stickers: Cosmo Cricket. Pen: Sharpie. Punches: Fiskars. Corner rounder: Crop-a-Dile. Ribbon: American Crafts.  Pin.

How much do I love this page??  I used my new cloud punch, and get used to it because it's my current favorite.  : )  So my first try is a little obvious - cloud patterned paper with a cloud-shaped punch.  But stay tuned, I have more ideas...  But I do love the clouds on this page.  They go right along with how I felt - like I was literally up in the clouds.  I used foam dots in three different thicknesses under the clouds to make them pop off of the page.  I printed the photo as a 5x7 which I rarely spring for.  I couldn't resist sneaking in one teeny bit of pink, mostly because it's unexpected (hmm, not unlike this one).  I threw in some machine-stitching to top it all off.

You can check out the page and pick up the supplies at my favorite dive, Crop Paper Scissors.

Ciao!

October 15 PSA

Quick reminder that if you still haven't completed your 2009 individual tax return, today is the day.  If it's not post-marked by today, you can welcome late filing penalties and interest.

Also, stay away from drugs.  : )

I'll be working on some great posts this weekend, good for scrappers and nonscrappers alike!  Can't wait to share.  Until then...

Have a great weekend!!

throwback thursday: tennis is my racket

I found this gem in the box-of-old-photos-that-was-shoved-in-the-back-of-Mom's-closet collection.

 
This is my aunt in 1977.

Nice jeans, girl.

the rose jar returns!

So, almost a month ago, you'll remember that Dave bought me these.

 
 
<Sigh.>

I dried them, cut the stems, and removed the leaves.

 
Then I rounded up a Mason jar from our wedding reception, scraped the candle wax out of it, put the rose heads in the jar, and made an envelope-tag to tell the story.

 

 
 
 

 
Supplies: Patterned paper: Basic Grey.  Alphas, journal tag: dear lizzy American Crafts.  Paint: Apple Barrel.  Pen: Sharpie.  Button, ribbon, velcro, thread.

I started by cutting a rectangle from two sheets of patterned paper (4 3/4 by 12) and adhering those together.  Then I dumped out a pail (you know, like Jack & Jill used) to trace an arc.  Once I had cut that out, I painted the perimeter with light pink paint and then ran it through my sewing machine.  Everything else just got tacked down, including a very small piece of velcro.  I used a small piece so that the flap stays down but the paper doesn't bend when you open the envelope.

It was kind of tricky to decide where my letters were going to go since the "g" and "f" took up so much space.  I spelled out my title by attaching the letters to wax paper and arranging the words on the card.  Once I knew where I wanted the letters to stay, I stuck them onto the card.

 
 
 

And now this rose jar is going on the shelf with my other one.  ; )

 

the charm of me

This one is all scrappy.

I love the new dear lizzy line by American Crafts.  I have been anxiously waiting for my local scrapbooking store to get it in stock, and I was behind the register ravaging the boxes before the merchandise was even checked in.

Totally worth it.

 
 
 

 
 
 

Supplies: Patterned paper, journal tags, foam alphas, key charms, brads, ribbon: dear lizzy.  Pen: ZIG.  Stickers: Making Memories.  Apron lace border punch: Fiskars.  Butterfly punch: Martha Stewart.  Jewels.

I lifted this page from Elizabeth Kartchner who designed the line.  You can pick up all of the supplies from Crop Paper Scissors.  ; )

It was fun to think about my "charms."  I had a friend help me.  I didn't realize that not everyone eats spoonfuls of honey until she told me that she doesn't keep honey at her house.  My response was, "Then how do you eat spoonfuls of it?"  When she gave me the "I don't eat spoonfuls of honey because I'm a normal person" look, I was puzzled at first.  Then I realized that it's a quirky thing I do, and aren't quirks better when you call them charms?

And in my defense, I would like to say that the only reason I was relating all of my friend's medical antecdotes to Grey's Anatomy was because I was trying to relate to her.  I was just trying to understand her work!

I'm back into CSI:Miami now that what's-his-name is gone.  Looks like Ryan started working out.  Finally.

Spoiler alert: rose jar tomorrow!

Good night!

throwback thursday: too cool for school

 

Nice glasses, girl.  And a lamb to boot!

[photo taken April 1988]

it's okay, we're married!

Hello, all,

Yesterday was kind of hard and stressful for me.  But Dave was on top of his game.  He cooked dinner, and I picked up drinks from Sonic and a movie from Redbox.  And did I mention that Dave bought me brownies??  Nothing like sweet chocolate to put an end to a bad day.  : )  Oh!  And he cleaned the kitchen!  Thanks, Bebe!

All that to say that I was reminded how good Dave is to me, which reminded me that I haven't shared this page yet. 

My mom (jokingly, I think) balked when she saw this photo, to which I said, "It's okay, we're married!" 

 
 

Supplies: Patterned paper: K & Co, Simply Luxe.  Alphas: Heidi Swapp.  Flowers, journal tag, clip: Making Memories.  Brad: Sassafrass.  Pen: Sharpie.  Sticker, ribbon, brads: American Crafts.  Bracket: K & Co.  Cardstock.

And there you have it - the best I can do in the middle of a hectic week.  ; )

 

why I no longer help my husband grade papers. subtitle: a definition of GT

So, during Dave's first year of teaching, he would sometimes bring stacks of math quizzes and tests home to grade.  Wanting to be a great wife, I volunteered to help grade his huge batch of quizzes.  He gave me an answer key, and I went to work. 

I don't remember our exact conversation, but it went something like this:

Angela: Is this a 6 or an 8?

Dave: It's an 8, but it should be a 6, so give him half credit.

A: But it's wrong.  And he didn't even show his work.  They were supposed to show their work.

D: Yeah, but he got part of it right, so it's partial credit.

A: But if you plug in a number for x, it gives you a different answer. 

D: Just do half credit.

A: But it's wrong.

D: I'm the teacher, I get to decide.  Half credit.

A: But it's wrong.

D (accusingly): You were a GT student, weren't you?

A: Yeah.  So.

And that was the only time I helped him grade papers.

Contrary to popular belief, GT stands for "gifted and talented" and not Glowing Technicolor.   ; )  Not to toot my own horn, but here are some characteristics of gifted and talented individuals:

has a keen and sometimes unique sense of humor (nailed it)

reads at an early age and comprehends with advanced understanding

has an unusual ability to memorize (Mom, remember two months ago when you challenged me to remember Sue's phone number?  Still got it.)

expresses himself fluently, clearly, and forcefully with words, numbers, and creative products (see above anecdote)

rebels against irrelevant learning requirements

becomes excited about new ideas but may not carry them through (whoopsie)

has high expectations of self and others which may lead to high levels of frustration with self, others, and situations (see above anecdote)

Toot, toot!

 Just one more example of how Dave loves me, for better or for worse.  : )

Happy week, everyone!