Oooh...some Jillibean goodness! ;)

Well, now that the Jillibean New DT call is over...I can share what I made for it. Now, I didn't get picked, but I will try next year.....I am sure that the ladies picked are AWESOME! :)

There is ONE thing I HATE about DT calls though. I always want to share what I make...I am always crafting and I really do want to share everything I do. I understand why the rules are the way they are, but still; it would be nice to be able to share what you make. ;)

Ok...enough of the SOAP BOX! ;) I am here to share tonight.

Here in Great Falls, since we have lost our only local scrap store (MOMS-which is on-line only now) we can't get any of the not so heavily distributed goods and fun lines that are out there. We can go to Michael's, but they carry the much seen and used companies (Making Memories, American Crafts, Martha Stewart....but are now starting to carry some MME too) and although I love these companies...I like my smaller companies too. :)

Ok...now for the projects. The only Jillibean Soup products I have are the patterned papers and the journaling sprouts. I also only have the papers from her "soup"lines: Minestrone, Black Beans, and Talk Soup. I am hoping that an old store I used to frequent with some old friends in Helena, The Memory Trail, carries Jillibean Soup OR I hope Jeanie gets it in at MOMS.

So, #1 is a LO I did of Sasha with pics that were taken back in 2008. I love these pics! :) I did some work in PSE and changed the colors to sepia. The Jillibean papers I used were: Minestrone, and the flowers were cut out of some Black Bean. The "Take Note", "Look at Me", and the "Happiness is" Journaling and embellies are from the backside of the Minestrone paper. I also used a Jillibean Soup journaling sprout. For other stuff...I used Doodle Bug Designs bling..I think it was black beetle. I also put a Jolee's (I think) Coke Bottle cap on it to finish it up. SUCH A FUN LO! :)

#2 was a LO I did a couple of months ago and sent into Kimber at Jillibean Soup and never heard anything about if she would use it as a reader submission or not...so I am gonna share it. Now, I did share this one on my Facebook page a while back, but now it is on MY blog! ;) This pic was taken in 1978 of me as a baby. ;) The Jillibean papers I used were: Talk Soup (Cup of Yak), the butterflies were cut out of Minestrone (Cup of Leek) and of course the flowers (I love these too much) were from Black Bean. Seriously, is Jill not the best? Love Jillibean. I popped up a lot of the paper embellies I did. I also Stickled the butterflies...so pretty! ;) The last thing I did was spray some lace with some Tattered Angels Coffee and Sandy Beach Glimmer Mists and edged some pieces of paper with my Fiskars Border Punch. I put on some 7gypsies numbers on there (78) and the little rounded rectangle journal spot is from them also.

Last but certainly NOT least is a LO I did of my bestie and I! :) Bex and I made some Divinity Cookies in December. These are super easy and so delicious it will make your head spin. Without getting too much here---your mouth with BURST with happiness! ;) Ok, so for Jillibean stuff I have used the journaling sprouts: one was brown on its own...the other I had to sponge applicate with some Antique Linen Ranger Ink. Then I, of course had a "Dec" journaling sprout on there. I am not sure what the patterned paper is called....if any of you do...email me: 3bears@bresnan.net. I cut the rolling pin and hand mixer out of some Bazzill Dotted Swiss cardstock with my Cricut using the From My Kitchen Cartridge. :) The "Baking Besties" title was actually from Miss Elizabeth's foam letters and I colored them with my Rich Cocoa Memento Pen/Marker. The "Together" and "Memories of the Heart" stickers are from 7gypsies. :)

Thanks so much for visiting me today! ;)

"Me in 2010" Layout

Hey all! :) Well, I didn't get this layout posted yesterday as I had hoped. I had the pics done on Monday, but it was beautiful here in Great Falls and I had to go out and seize the day! :)

Again, I have used Jeanie's awesome digi goodness on this layout. I actually used the same paper I did for my "Togetherness" card. This time I just printed out as an 8x8. :) I then decided on a design. I am not a sketcher or even a planner when it comes to my scrapbooking and card making. I just let what I am working with inspire me. I got inspired by the leaves and nice spring green and natural colors in Jeanie's paper. Again, I cannot stress this enough...Jeanie's Digi paper is so easy to use and work with whether you are a hybrid scrapper (like me) or a full-on Digi Diva. :)

Anyways- I thought of what I am about right now in my life. Then I got an idea...we are so into the "using your stash" movement right now that I went to some K&Co Tags to Go that I had bought a long time ago. I, then, just started going through all of the tags and looking for words that just hit me as, "me".

I ended up with 12! :) Twelve words that really described me. If you care, they were: soar, teach, huggable, experience, reach, love, free, growth, relax, family, happiness, and laughter. To attach the tags I used brads that were mostly from Bo bunny.

I finished up the "Me in 2010" 8x8 design with some gold We R Memory Keepers Flourish rub-ons on opposite corners and on in the middle. :)

Now I had originally just had this as a 8x8 layout, but then I wanted to add a pic. I didn't want my pic to be the main focus though, so I printed it out small (about 2x3). I then went to find some paper that would go with what I had already created...nothing like scrapping on the fly! ;) I ended up picking some My Mind's Eye (Penny Lane) die-cut paper. I just love it!

I got the 8x8 on there and then my pic. Then I decided to put some flowers on. I had some in my "flower drawer" (yes, I have a WHOLE drawer in my studio just for FLOWERS). Most of these were just from past open packs, however; I did trim the back off of some flowers that I had picked up at the Dollar Tree.

After this, the page was still lacking to me, so I found my Martha Stewart tags and put for word that will be "me" forever. Those were: Friend, Daughter, Wife, and Mother. :) Too finish up I just added some bling over the "mother" tag. :)

Thanks for looking and I hope you enjoyed! :)

Let's have a little "Togetherness"

Here's the scoop: Jeanie has been working on some digi-goodness lately and I have been lucky enough to get to work with some of her papers. :) I love Jeanie's designs! :) She really knows how to put colors and some natural elements together. I did very little to the papers that she has sent me. :)

Here are a couple of the pluses that I think of when I think if digi papers!

1. You can print out as many as you need! :) Once you have the design....it's yours! :)

2. If it isn't exactly what you are looking for.....change it! :) I layered Jeanie's Blue Textured paper and her Spring Leaves papers and changes the opacity. I loved the outcome and you will not BELIEVE how easy it was. :) I am sure most of you know how to work with digi elements..if not...email me: 3bears@bresnan.net. I will walk you through as best as I can! :)

So, onto the project! :) This project was super easy and fast! :) Under a half hour for me from start to finish! :) Gotta love that, huh? Anyways, I used American Crafts textured white cardstock, My Mind's Eye-Laundry Line (dragonflies) and Canadian (togetherness) rub-ons, Bazzill embossed cardstock (green-not sure on exacts), and BoBunny Brads (Alissa). The rub-ons and brads were placed on Jeanie's digi paper that I had worked with. :) Love the outcome! :)

This is just a close up...I just LOVE how the papers go with the dragonfly rub-ons! :) MAGIC! :)

If you need to get a hold of Jeanie to ask about her fun designs you can go to her blog here!

Her email is also on there! :)

Weekend Floen-ness!! ;)

LOL! I am not sure what kind of goofiness I was thinking of when I was typing the title, but it seems a little catchy to me anyway! :)

Friday I had a Partylite Candle Party. I did have a nice number of friends and family there and got some good food and good laughs going on. :) I just loved the gal who did my party. Her name is Jen and she is just the nicest person ever! :)

After the party, I took my mom home and Sasha decided to go with her and I. We got to my mom and dad's and Sasha completely took the house over. She is so much like me it isn't funny. Definitely the dominate personality no matter where she is at. We can't help it...we are just like that! ;) HA! :)

We got home at 2:30AM! Yes, you read that right....did I mention Sasha is a night owl....like her MOM! Poor thing is doomed I tell you! :)

Saturday morning when we did wake up we all just relaxed until Jon went to a b-day party for his friend, Tristan. :) I did have to come up with a card! :) This is what I came up with. :) I just used We R Memory Keepers- MVP Collection Patterened Paper and pieces and a piece of black scrap paper. You can't get much simpler people! :)

Today was such a beautiful day here in Great Falls that after we picked Jon up from his party (it was a sleep over), we played outside. I wanted to rake or something, but Garth thought we should just enjoy life...so that is what we did. :)

Now it is right around 9:30pm and we are all winding down. I have a feeling it will be another long night with Little Miss, but I will get some scrappiness done....well, something creative anyway. :)

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY!!! What on Earth have I been doing?

WOW! I have got to get better about this blogging. I have to admit though, I did enjoy this little "hiatus" from the blogging world. I have been up to a lot.

I did try LOAD (LayOut A Day) in February and seemlingly failed at it again. Everyone there is so supportive though and the layouts I did get done got compliments. So, when I look at it that way...it was a successful LOAD for me.

I am still on my trek to get something published or getting on a design team. What is funny though is that I am trying out for a couple of DT's and I am not as stressed anymore. I know I love what I do and I really don't do it for anyone but me. I also will not change my work that I do from my heart to mimic a lot of what gets accepted. At first my feelings were deeply hurt when I wasn't picked for DT's or my work wasn't picked up. I would beat myself up because I didn't share my cards, layouts, and projects with you...my friends. Well, that is changing! :)

I will tell you that I am trying out for 2 DT's right now and I am so excited about both of them! :) I have had so much fun creating the projects that I did do for them and I will share my projects after the calls are over. I know my Facebook friends have been beyond supportive of me and what I do. I love you all and you make me feel so lucky to have the support I can truely count on! :)

I am still on Mountains of Memories design team and there is so much to look forward to from Jeanie. Yes, she is trying to sell the store, but she is trying to spread her wings also and is doing beautiful work that I get to work on also. Which is another reason why I need to get to blogging again. I want to help Jeanie as much as I can on her journey and I know it will be a successful one! :) I love you, Jeanie! ((HUGS))

However, the pic I am going to leave you with is of Miss Sasha. She is my night owl and has not had a decent bedtime for a week or more now, but she is by my side as I create and I love having her here. Besides, with Garth and Jon sleeping...I need some company! :)

This pic was taken when we were making sugar cookies to decorate for Jon's class for Valentine's Day. She was having just as much fun sneaking dough from the table. Can you not see the evidence?

Creative Therapy Catalyst #95

Hey everyone! I am so happy that I got to take part in Creative Therapy's Challenge! :) I have wanted to take part in these for so long now. I found them through one of their artist scrapbookers, Dedra Long, who is one of the most gifted scrapbookers on the planet! Her work has been published and is beyond gorgeous....I would LOVE to see her work in person someday. A girl can only dream! ;)

Anyway-the catalyst for this week was: "What is something you struggle with?" At first, I was thinking, THIS IS A HARD THING TO DEAL WITH FOR THE FIRST CATALYST I AM DOING!!!!!! Then I thought and focused and came up with a layout idea that I thought I may like and then I went with it.

This is what I came up with:

The title is: There's always gonna be an uphill battle.

I then remembered there was a song that had those words...I just couldn't remember what it was called....Then it hit me...."The Climb" by Miley Cyrus. So then I looked for lyrics on the web. I started reading and realized I was right, that line was in the song. I then decided to read the song and started to cry...the words explained everything! I loved it!

Here are those words:

The Climb (written by J. Alexander and J. Mabe)

I can almost see it

That dream I'm Dreaming

But there's a voice inside my head saying

"You'll never reach it"

Every step I'm taking

Every move I make feels

Lost with no direction

My faith is shaking

But I gotta keep trying

Gotta keep my head held up high

There's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna wanna make it move

Alway gonna be an uphill battle

Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb

The struggles I'm facing

The chances I'm taking

Sometimes might knock me down

But no, I'm not breaking

I may not know it

But these are the moments that

I'm gonna remember the most, yeah

Just gotta keep going

And I, got to be strong

Just keep pushing on

'Cause there's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna want to make it move

Always gonna be an uphill battle

Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb, yeah

There's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna wanna make it move

Always gonna be an uphill battle

Somebody's gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side

It's the climb, yeah

Keep on moving, keep climbing

Keep the faith, baby

It's all about, it's all about the climb

Keep the faith, keep your faith whoa.

Now for the completely personal part. I had to write these struggles on my layout. I was wondering.....Am I ready to do this? I think sometimes we think that if we don't say or write our insecurities, worries....our not so "shiny" aspects of life that they don't exist. That is so not the truth. I thought that way and I couldn't have been more wrong.

So here is my journaling: Insecurities- my weight- ( I joke about it, but it kills me when I look in the mirror) my skin- (I have always had BAD SKIN, but was hoping once I was in my 30's- it would be nice and clear). how I kiss (told you this was deeply personal)- (This isn't my hubby's fault, but I worry constantly about this.) I'm very critical about my cooking- (Even though everyone tells me how good it is, I always feel it could be better.)

Worries - financial- ( This has been a struggle for me for a while. I am one of those "I need it now!" types. Health- (I have fibromyalgia, but I refuse to let it control me.) my kids- (I worry about how I am as a mom.) my hubby- (I worry if I make him happy-ALL THE TIME!)

Addiction- -Sometimes I feel like a cigarette--I have been able to say, "NO!" for a few years now. Shopping- this is actually an addiction.

Depression - After being diagnosed with it 2 years ago-it is still a struggle.

-I am always wanting to be successful at my art.

- I want people to enjoy me and my work.

What I used: I bought pretty much everything , except the Jolee's paper roses from Mountains of Memories and More...not only is Jeanie my friend, but she is an awesome person and her store is great! :)

Both the blue patterned paper and the cream part I wrote on are from My Mind's Eye, Bella Bella Collection. For the title, I used a chalk template from (Ben Franklin) by TheCraftersworkshop.com. I used chalks from Pebbles Inc. to chalk the templates (also the edges of the lyrics). The butterfly is Glimmer Glass from Tattered Angels. The larger flowers are from Jenni Bowlin (I got them from my friend, Jayne's webstore and the smaller ones are from Making Memories Vintage Findings Collection (Michael's), Bazzil cardstock for matting.

I really hope you all enjoyed this! : )I did! :) Thanks! :)

Happy New Year! :) Six Days Late! :)

Hey friends! :) I am hoping that all of you had a Happy New Year! :) I also hope that all of you are staying warm and healthy. In Montana we are cold with a nice blanket of fluffy, white snow on the ground. I don't mind it though, it gives me an excuse to give more hugs! :) Yep, I am a dork! :) LOL! :)

I am planning on posting a lot more...even if I can't post a layout (because I have submitted it or something), I plan on at least showing a pic of what we have been up to. :)

We had a wonderful holiday here and got totally spoiled by friends and family. I also was getting ready for a Design Team Call with The Studio (the blog). They a fun scrapbooking group (web group) that really is international. :) They are a nice group of ladies and I will feel this way regardless of if I get picked or not for the DT. :)

Since I can't share my LOs with you that I made for the call just yet...I will leave you with what we were doing at Midnight on January 1st, 2010. :)