You're a Star...

Happy rainy Monday to you all!

I don't know about you, but it is raining cats & dogs in my little corner of Massachusetts today. The rivers are swelled and more rain is expected through Wednesday morning. When it rains hard the drain in my driveway can't keep up and we have our own little waterfront property. I have sat out on the porch after a hard rain in the Summer with a drink in hand and just pretended...I know, pretty silly but when you can only dream you need to improvise. It makes it fun for the kids though to splash around and float toy boats in.

On to other matters...My craft room is clean and since I can finally see my work space I have started scrapping again...yeah! I didn't realize how much I missed the creative outlet until I sat down, popped in a good movie and began creating Saturday afternoon. The kids joined me for a movie on Sunday afternoon and I scrapped away. This is a good thing. Not only am I completing pages, getting some creative therapy in & spending time with the kiddos, I am also using up the piles & piles of paper and embellishments I have collected (and not used!). I am a hoarder. So afraid to use paper because what if I need it somewhere else...duh, isn't that why I bought it in the first place? So I started using it. There are some wonderfully beautiful papers on the market right now that I am itching to get my fingers on, but my plan is to use up at least 1/2 of what I have before I start collecting more.

I have a layout calling my name but I want to share this one I completed this weekend with you. The initial sketch for the first page came from a layout by Lisa Dorsey (found in CK Feb '10). I adopted her layout and changed it up a bit to make it my own. The second page I winged and loved how it came out. With the concept of using up what I have on hand I ended up pulling out some retired CTMH paper that fit perfectly with the colors and theme of the layout.

Sorry about the pics but it has been so long since I posted a layout I was having issues remembering how I positioned them to get in nice and close. I will have another to share in a bit and will make sure I resolve my issues!

Have a great evening,

Tracy

{showcase of stars} materials:
Stamps: True Friends (CTMH), Vintage USA (CTMH)
Paper: Independence Lvl 2 (CTMH, retired)
Ink: Outdoor Denim, Holiday Red (CTMH)
Embellisments: Independence My Stickease (CTMh, ret); sparkles, hemp, buttons

detaching the ole' feed bag...now!

ahhh - today would be wednesday right? my dedicated day to update the world on my weight loss journey. honestly? i don't have an update because i have not attended a ww meeting in some time {sigh}. that being said, i don't think i have inflicted that much damage by not being held accountable by the hunk of metal in front of the desk, but i don't think i have made too much progress in the loss category either.

i will be returning to my meeting next weekend, back on track. i have a goal, quite a lofty one i might add, but never-the-less, an obtainable one if i kick my fat butt into gear and start following the program. spring clothes shopping is right around the corner and i will have a new wardrobe come may 1...and then summer clothes shopping right behind that and since i own 1 pair of shorts and chucked the 2 pairs of capris i lived in last summer (they were falling off then) i really need to buy a new summer wardrobe as well...or i could hide in my house until fall but that ain't happening. so since i refuse to buy a new wardrobe at the size i am now, i suppose i need to remove the feed bag from the front of my face and start this program over!

ok, thank you for indulging my rantings...

i am off to the store soon to buy another pair of jeans. i live in jeans and currently down to 2 pairs because my fav pair split (from wear, they were actually being held on by a belt). the second pair is saggy and i am in a smaller size in the other pair, so what the heck...i have coupons, the store is having a sale and i am keeping the fingers crossed that the smaller size is not a fluke and i can happily say i lost a pant size!

i will keep you posted and hope to share a weight loss soon!

enjoy your day ~

tracy

Thanks Snow Much...eventhough Spring is in the air

hey there!

First off i should apologize for being a bit MIA over the past few weeks. i was so on a roll with posting and then BAM! this nasty head cold hit me like a mack truck and i needed to conserve what energy i actually had for keeping up with the housework and staying conscious enough to get my kids where they needed to be. by the time i had any "free" time to create, i opted for sleep as i am not too sure what i would have created would have been worth looking at anyway...those toothpicks holding my eyes open and the tissue box permanently attached to my nose tended to get in the way.

Anywhoo...i am now feeling somewhat normal, at least enough to be back into my routine and even got a little crafty at the end of last week. i would have posted sooner, but i decided to recoop enough this past weekend to get in a little spring skiing...probably our last of the season which is a bummer 'cuz we had such a great family winter, but now i do have a little extra time to catch up on my scrapbooking.

So today, i have this cute little card to share with you. i know spring like weather is hitting most of the country (at least if it is in the mid-50's in MA, i am considering it spring-like) but i made this little card as a thank you for the ski patrol (along with a basket of blueberry and pumpkin strudel muffins) at the mountain we have season passes at. thankfully we did not need their services..instead they were kind enough to take kelsey under their wings and let her ski with them for a few afternoons. she was also able to help them with scenario training and posed as their victim. she had a wonderful time, a great experience and we are truly thankful that they were kind enough to indulge her and foster her interests.

{thank you snow much}


The sketch for the card came from a card on this post by Mercy. I absolutely love her work and her sketch challenges are so much fun. the paper (just chillin) and stamp set (wonderful winter) are both CTMH, but unfortunately both are now retired. i used my piercing tool and one other (current) CTMH stamp set (simple stitches) for the faux stitching with vineyard berry ink. the sentiment is printed from ms word using comic sans and jokewood fonts. i have to apologize as i apparently took this shot before i trimmed my ribbon...{sorry}.

On my list of things to accomplish this week is "print pictures" so i am heading on over to yorkphoto.com who is offering 100 prints for $10 (shipping included) until the 17th and printing a whole bunch of pics that are sitting on my computer...then I am getting in the crafty mode and scrappin' away...i hope to be able to share soon.

enjoy your day (and the weather),

Tracy