What an exciting day!

Today truly was exciting. I was so glad to be able to meet with Rhonda and discuss me becoming a teacher for The Scrapbook Shop... And of course I am going to work there! I can't wait to get started on the class mini album project that I have planned!

The summer album is complete, minus so minor details that I just gotta do! So when that is complete I will be listing it and getting tons of pictures of it added to the blog. I have tons of things that I have to get done in the next couple of weeks. But it is all great and fun things to do... and to give you some ideas of some of the things that I have been working on, I redid the cherry hello card. The first version was ok, but buttons really made it look much better. So here is a little look at the redone version...

Also I wanted to add that Rhonda (the owner of the store) is so nice! I have worked as a teacher before and had to work in the box, but this seems like I will be able to be completely creative. And that is what I love! Plus the store is one of the greatest (despite the long drive...lol) because it has some of the most unique items available. You can get tons of hard to find, completely unique and wow I would have never used that on a scrapbook items there. You should check it out if you ever get a chance! Here is the site http://www.scrapbookshopofstpaul.com/

I hope everyone is having a great day! ;0) Tracy

Summer mini album (under construction)!!

I wish I had an under construction banner or some type of clipart that said that because that is how my desk looks right now. It is a mess! I have tons of things out because I have started making this super cute summer mini album that I plan on selling on ebay. I am also thinking about making some kits of the album as well. I love the colors and the embellishments and even the diecuts that I have been making. I would take a photo but someone would surely think I kept a messy house if I took a photo of that space! lol lol lol

I am going to start showing pics of the album later this week. I don't want to give the entire book away before I completely finish it (like I do with so many other projects). But I could share some of the names of the products that I am using on it...so far I have used Basic Grey's lime rickey papers and buttons, Chatterbox, Fancy Pants, Making Memories, Cosmo Cricket (the kitchen line...love it!), WRMK, and Creative Cafe. And tons of Quickutz, Bosskut, Spellbinders and Sizzix dies which I backed most of them with chipboard.

But I am hoping to finish it up by Wednesday and have it listed on Thursday. But if you have been following my work, I always seem to find a way to make products that I am creating just to list more complicated. I never can walk away from it when I say that it is done. This isn' t an issue when creating custom work for a specific customer because I have pictures or themes set, but that isn't the case for this mini album. It takes more time to make something that anyone could use instead of something specifically for a person. So far I have been working on this mini album for about 17hours (or a period of 2.5days) and I am a little over half way done.

But be on the look out for pictures of the mini album...I am off to get some dinner!

A card for an older boy...

I was looking through my cards and realized that I had no cards for friends on my son. And we recently went to a graduation party of a family member and I thought as I bought a $6.25 card, that I need to get to making some older themed cards. So earlier this week I went through all 5 shoe boxes of cards that I have and made sure that all were in their correct tabbed section, and teen/older boy cards didn't have any in there. So I am going to make a couple of the same cards (maybe?? not exactly sure of this yet) just changing the theme a little here and there.

So here is the first card that I made....I HATE IT! Seriously I do. It was like I couldn't get the process going right and then things just didn't seem to look good together and finally I just put some stuff down and here is what that looks like...

But after going to the park with the kids and having a good night's rest, I came up with this card. I like this one much better but it still isn't there just yet. The metal pieces don't really match but I guess that's ok? I guess? It's hard to match anything with the metal football/basketball because it is a really weird aged colored embellishment.

But here are the supplies and some general info on the card.

Supplies: 2nd card...Karen Foster mini metal sport charms(I believe), metal photo corner (unknown),Cuttlebug embossing folder-Happy Birthday, Martha Stewart border punch,Diesel classic alpha (MVP) cut from chipboard and then kraft colored cardstock and faux stitiching added.Fancy Pants fall ribbon, and misc buttons from my stash.
The only difference between the first and second card supplies is that I inked the MVP with Chestnut Roan chalk ink, added pop dots, distress the yellow mat with Heidi Swap's distress tool and added white paint mixed with Chestnut Roan ink to the red mat....(oops I used the same paint combination on both cards. )

Another quick card...

I just wanted to post my card that I completed this am...it is inspired by another card makers sketch and the color challenge was from hero arts blog. The challenge was to use red and green together. I love those colors but most of the time it's hard to make cards with those colors without it having a Christmas feel to them...and since I refuse to make Christmas cards (although Christmas in July is everywhere right now) I pulled out some of those Quickutz dies (Cherry KS-0797) that I just hadn't done anything with. I love the end result! What do you think?? It's a Cherry hello...

my batteries are charging for my camera so I decided to scan the card. The only problem with that is there isn't any side views available. The A, and hello are handwritten by me. I guess now that I look at it I could have made them a little straighter.

What's Cooking?? Cards that's what...

I have been a little busy making cards these last couple of days. I really am loving the idea that I am using up supplies that I have had forever and papers that I hadn't touched because I was saving it for something special. What's more special than a card just for no reason or one just for your special day?

So I wanted to take a moment to upload the 4 of the 8 cards that I did...hope you get inspiration from them. I love the papers that I used and was glad that I finally used some of that special stash. These cards have stamped images...

but these cards have absolutely no stamping at all. The images are actually diecuts that I have embellished to make them work for this card. I have had this apron forever (from Quickutz) and I had only used it once before (to send some aprons to a fellow scrapper) and I had these saying forever to use on cards. Then I saw a fellow scrapper use stamps that had an apron and something else and I decided that it was time to break out all those sayings and dies and get busy. And so I did. (Supplies; Qk apron, BBQ dies and swirls goosebumps folder, and Bosskut oven mitt, and Spellbinders labels and scalloped rectangle dies. We R Memory Keepers papers, blue gingham ribbon is MM, and red ribbon is unknown, the what's cooking was created with American crafts rub-ons (purkey), and Tim Holtz tea dye distress inks.)

Here is a close up of the diecuts. I have plans to make several cards in the next month using only diecuts and stickers/rub-ons and misc supplies. Just to prove that it can be done! I am hoping that I will have enough time to upload all the pictures of them.

I don't know if I have mentioned this before but I usually spend the summer making cards because it is something that I usually don't do at all in the fall/winter. So most of my posts will be about them. And I will have to eventually start working on scrapbook pages again (sooner than later,especially because I have a new little person to scrapbook). I even plan on creating a couple of fall themed albums again for ebay/etsy...so be on the lookout. The last one sold as a buy now and it was sold in a matter of hours.

Here is a link to the post that had the album in it

http://scrapalongwithtracy.blogspot.com/2008/10/be-thankful-everyday-mini-albumits-done.html

please note that any links to old ebay sells are no longer active. And ebay removes them after they are sold (I believe 90 days from when the sold).

A quick update on a busy week

Well it's been a little busy around here. I am sure you all have tons going on too! I am learning new "routines" this week. I am trying to really learn what is going to work and what isn't. So far I have a lot of isn'ts lol lol. But I have tons of things to share. I have some really great pics of us as a family for the 4th of July.

Here are a couple....

I have no idea why Vele wanted to hold the Nya like this but oh well the picture is still cute ;0)

And here is one of us as a family. I have tons of editing to do to the other pictures so I decided to add these few before its been a month since the 4th and I haven't shared anything.

Oh and if you ever wonder what's for dinner on the 4th, it can range from one bbq'ed item to the next, some summer salads...but the night always ends in fireworks and a jello cake. And every year we have people over but this year at the last minute that changed...but the cake still was awesome. Here is a picture of that...oh the icing isn't icing at all, that's coolwhip!


And early in the week was my most awesome person in the world's birthday...my hubs! He turned 33 and it was nice but he worked that day (so he could have his floating holiday be Friday and have a 4 day weekend)...But here is the card that I made for him.

I am just so glad that he is finally my age because it was getting old to here him say something about my age whenever he could. lol lol.

Also I plan on making some other cards soon. I have collected some great sayings and can't wait to actually use them on a page.

And also since I have done anything relating to cooking in awhile. I just had to say that I tried a recipe that was on a fellow scrapbookers site. I really liked how it turned out. We had it for dinner last night and I want to thank Amy G for sharing it...check it out! It is awesome!

http://family.grendell.net/2009/06/recipe-share-chipotle-chicken-rice.html

Hi family and friends...

I hope all is well for everyone?!! We are doing ok (or at least that is what I am striving for right now)...It is really hard to adjust to lack of sleep and trying to function as normal. I was just thinking oh my goodness how in the world did I do this before, sleep for 2 or 3 hours maybe a night and then turn around and drive Vele to work at 5 am or 6:30am and then drive the kids to school. I thank God truly that I didn't kill all of us! But at least I am not driving this time around.

So enough about, that let's see what can I share...oh we went to the park a couple of weeks ago and at first I just sat and took pics of everyone. It was such a nice day that I forgot that I only had been out of the hospital the weekend before...but I was quickly reminded that I should have not done what I was doing...Vele even got the picture! And this wasn't planned at all.

I also want to say in my defense, that I just wanted to have fun with my family. I completely forgot that I just had a c-section . Secondly, although this was my 3rd c-section it was not an emergency one and I actually felt better so of course when you feel better, you try to do normal things...I just really didn't expect for something so simple to hurt so bad. And although it looks like I am laughing I really was terrified once the motion/gravity started and the pain kicked in I realized that holding the slide wouldn't help so I let go...thank goodness for pain meds! I surely took them that night.

Here are a couple of pictures of the crew at the Doctors office, I have had to go in a couple of times (due to complications, not the related to the slide-lol lol) but I decided to get some quick pictures of the family together. I don't have any idea why LeiLani is smiling the way that she is, it has become her "new " face. She has been doing this now whenever I am trying to get a picture of the two girls together.