A New Adventure!

I love the start of a new adventure. The surprises, the excitement, the new challenges. It's a wonderful thing.

As Drew would say, "Ta Da Da Da Daaaaaaaa!"


I can't even descibe how excited I am to team up with the super talented, template genius Tiffany Tillman!

You can find the templates at Little Dreamer Designs. The cool thing is that you can buy the collection of four (actually 12 layouts - four two-page and eight one-page layouts) for $9.00 or you can buy them individually for $3.00. AND right now Little Dreamer Designs is celebrating their 2nd birthday so everything is 30% off until May 2. Definitely a great time to go check everything out!

So, cheers to a new and exciting adventure! :)

Planning the big ONE.

Where did the last year go? I can't believe that Jackson will soon be one-year-old! At least this time I was a little more prepared after seeing just how quickly the time goes. I made sure to soak up as much of the baby time as I could.

Last week I started the big search for birthday party decorations, invitations, and cake ideas. I must say I was a little disappointed with the selection. First of all I'm not a big fan of the all blue first birthday stuff. It just looks so babyish. After a lot of looking I figured I could make everything myself and would probably be a whole lot happier with everything. So that's just what I did.


The frame took me very little time and I thought it would be a great way for everyone to see how much Jackson has grown and changed over the last year. I arranged twelve photos (one for each month) into a grid, leaving the four middle squares blank so I could add some embellishments. These frames by Fancy Pants are awesome. Instead of glass it has a heavy transparency, which means can even stitch on it! I left a little bit of the transparency showing around the edges of the photo grid.


Next up I made the invitations. I wanted them to be super simple since I had to make so many. I used a cloud shaped piece of chipboard to create a cupcake top. After that I added some stitching, a cupcake holder and a candle.


If you want to see detailed instructions on how to make both of these go to the Fancy Pants blog.

Easter in a nutshell (or should I say eggshell...)

Despite the gloomy weather our Easter was great! 

There were funny faces.

Not just on Drew, but the eggs too.

Lots of hugs...

and kisses too!

Some very cleverly hidden Easter eggs. 

A tickle attack on Drew.

And finally, a great family picture. 

Hope you had a great Easter! We sure did.

Monday

This last Monday I quite possibly had the most fun I've had at work. All because of these two. My sister and my mom. I don't know what it was but we were all in such a goofy mood, Stacey and I teaming up against Mom with our signature smart ass comments, Mom giving the look that consists of a tilted head and a smirk on her face. We almost always say that we got our witty and sarcastic characteristics from Dad, but I think we got some from Mom too. She's just a little more ladylike about it. 

Years ago I never would have thought that I would have the relationship that I do with my mom or my sister. Mom and I had some rough, I would like to say patches but to be honest I would have to say years, while I was in high school. Two stubborn women that could never agree on anything or simple disagree just so we weren't agreeing. It sounds exhausting and it was. Stacey and I have been close for quite some time but believe me, it didn't start out that way. I was the pesky sister that only wanted to be like my big sis. I drove her crazy! In turn she didn't really want to hang out with me much. 

I was a little scared at first that we were all going to be working together. Would the old problems Mom and I had resurface? Would Stacey and I get to the point of wanting to knock each other out? Much to my relief, it's been nothing short of great. Sure there have been moments that might not have gone smoothly and yes, there have been arguements, but we always manage to work through them and get right back to our goofy selves. 

I feel like the three of us have been through so much together and that our relationship is always growing. I feel so lucky to have these two women in my life. 

Super easy cards.

Every month when kit club time rolls around Mom and I have a little competition over who has the best layout. I mean, there's no trophy or bonus involved, just a little creative push to help us do the best that we can. Well, that and the thrill of bragging rights. 

So getting to the point of my story...I copied something she did on a layout. (I'll never hear the end of that.) I walked into the store one day to see an adorable layout she had made using Fancy Pants Kraft Kuts. Going across the bottom of her page were little house that she had cut out and arranged in a line. It was so cute and I knew instantly that I was going to steal that idea. 

Mom won this time. 

Making a Splash

Each month I look forward to the Tools & Techniques column by Jennifer McGuire in Creating Keepsakes. There are always so many useful and fun ways to get the most of your products and really stretch your supplies. On Saturday I was so excited to see the May issue of CK waiting for me in the mailbox. I was in scrapbooking bliss when I saw that this month her column is using circle punches, which I have about a million of!


I couldn't wait to test out a few of the techniques and happened to have some pictures that would work great with the "wave" technique. I used three different sized circle punches to punch out the wave pattern on the dark blue paper along the bottom of my layout. Super easy and super cute! :)

Debbie, we do four retreats a year, two in the spring and two in the fall. You should be able to find all the information at www.scrapbookgeneration.com. If you can't find the information you are looking for, feel free to email me at alidavis1919@hotmail.com and I can answer any questions you might have. :)