Saturday, April 5, 2008

Some new products from my CTs and some AMAZING photos!!

It's been soooooooooo long since I've really shared the latest with my CTs and I wanted to do that for you tonight while I had my mind on it :)

Newest kit from Vicki Stegall:

It's Only Natural

I think I would buy that kit for the spoons alone, LOL. I just love her unique elements and fasteners and this kit is a MUST HAVE!!

Next up is Christina Renee:

Botanical Happiness II

I already have set one of these and I just absolutely LOVE them. I swear they are just AMAZING and I LOVE that butterfly in this second set!! You can dress up a page so easily with these!

Finally, we have the newest from Melanie Colosimo:

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Okay, okay, so technically you can't see what's in it but I promise if you LOVE her templates then you are going to LOVE this bag! They are fabulous!!

I have two other designers that I play with but sadly they are both on a designing hiatus and I am trying to wait very patiently for them to come back to me. I love both their designs and I hope they do come back!

I also wanted to share some AMAZING photos with you today! My brother sent me an e-mail titled "National Geographic's Best Nature Photos". I'm not sure if these are "officially" awarded that name or if someone just decided which photos they liked best and started an e-mail but they are amazing nonetheless. It may take a minute to load up because there are quite a few but I put them in a cute lil slideshow for you. I hope you enjoy!!



I think that's all I've got for ya tonight :) Have a great Sunday tomorrow!

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Shopping to support Literacy!!

There's a site that has been around for a while now and is owned by some FABULOUS peeps who create incredible digi kits each month and all the proceeds (minus pay pal fees) go to a specific charity for that month. This site I'm talking about is Songbird Avenue and this month's charity is ProLiteracy Worldwide. My mother was a teacher for her entire life and literacy was very near and dear to her heart. She specialized in special education and was an AMAZING teacher. I'm not just saying that because she was my mom, she won teacher of the year for the county and received honors at a state level, she really was an amazing teacher. Because it was near and dear to her heart, it became near and dear to me all of my life and I think that ANY help that you can give to the cause is amazing and I'm so glad to see it as the charity pick for this month over at SA. Check out this gorgeous kit:

Songbird Avenue

You really should take a peek over there at their site and all the incredible things they've done. They really have helped out so many different organizations and their kits are always amazingly designed. You can also learn more about their organization on the site as well. Thanks for peeking today! I'm outta here! :)

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

New look!!

Woot! I have a new look and who knew how easy it would be!! Thanks soooooooooooo much Katy for helping me figure it all out AND for making that BEAUTIFUL banner up yonder! Yay! I'm so excited that it's personalized now and not just plain ole boring blog anymore! WooHoo!

Life has been raining down lemons lately...I'll not bore you with the full details but let's just say that everything around me (material objects of course) and are going to cost me a small fortune to repair or replace, oy! I know we'll get through though, we always do :) That's one good thing with me and dh, we may have the worst luck in the world but we always pull through. I do have to keep reminding him to calm down and just not stress to death over it, we'll make it. He's done better this time though :)

I am still mojo-less and I can't stand that. I just have no desire to get my Photoshop out to scrap. I've done a few other things but just can't get that done for some reason. I hope it returns soon or else my designers will start firing me one by one. Most of you in the digi world probably heard but Christina Renee let her Creative Team go because it was just so much stress on her and I was really sad about that but she has asked me to be one of her Creative Partners to help her run things behind the scenes so yay yay yay all is not lost!! I love helping her too, she's the sweetest thing in the world and she's always willing to let me vent things out when I need to which is fabulous!

Okay, I really don't have anything else to say, eek! I'm never at a loss for words but apparently things change, hehehe. Hope you enjoy the new look and I'll catch ya later!

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Tuesday's Top Five Apprentices

Hi again! Sorry I missed you all yesterday :( Work was a tad crazy and I just didn't feel like blogging last night :(

Today I'm bringing you my top five apprentices in this week's round of entries over in the Little Dreamer Designs Apprentice contest. Have you seen this contest? There are some AWESOME entries in it each week and I am just amazed at all the talent that's been hiding there. Where did you ladies come from? I am putting these in my top order too, so number one here is actually my #1 pick.

1. Sherriejd
2. fufusu
3. misslatrec
4. Ana Amorim
5. vicigreenlees

Well there you have it! My picks for this week at LDD. I think the best part about this contest is that you can get TONS of fabulous freebies and one lucky person is going to get to sell their items at LDD when this is all said and done. My #1 pick up there is my pal Sherrie. I didn't put her in the numero uno spot because she's my friend, I seriously just didn't know she had all that talent in her till she started this contest, it's really amazing what she's created for it so be sure to check out her other awesome entries for past weeks while you're there.

Check ya'll tomorrow!

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Sunday's Top Five............

I'm BAAAACCCKKK...........three days in a row, I think that might be a record for me *giggle* I don't have anything important to say today really. Dh is still sick, I've worked that mountain of laundry into a hill, I've done more disinfecting still than I care to ever do again and so far I'm still hiding out FAR FAR AWAY from him, hehehe. It's making him a little upset, he says I'm treating him like he has a disease (which he does) and he doesn't like it. I promised him all the kisses he wants when he's better :)

Okay for Sunday's top five, I'm going to link you up to my top five must read blogs for every day enjoyment...........so here ya go:

1. Confessions of a Pioneer Woman -- This girl is HILARIOUS and she's posting every day with fun stuff. If you've NEVER seen her blog you are REALLY missing out. She has a cooking blog to that I sub up to. On this blog though, she shares her life as a city girl turned country and has some INCREDIBLE photos on there too. Lots of fun little contests as well so you should really sub up to it and take a peek, if you get time be sure to check out the episodes of "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels - A Love Story" it's the best read yet!

2. Inspiration for Generation C -- This blog belongs to Julie Ann Shahin, she's just an amazingly talented scrapper and she's a complete sweetheart. She's always got some great inspiration on her blog.

3. You Just Never Know.. -- This blog belongs to Wendy Reed. I met her only recently at ScrapFreak and she just CRACKS ME UP! She is the funniest thing and she is soooooooooo uber talented when it comes to scrapping.

4. This is My Life -- This blog belongs to Janet Phillips, she's an amazing digital template designer and blogger too! She shares her life through her blog and there are so many fun stories on there. She has a brand new baby that I just awwwwwwwwww over every single time that I'm there.

5. P-Lucky -- This is my friend Katy's blog and she shares her family and her layouts here. I just LOVE her photos, they are just amazing and I LOVE seeing her layouts too. She has a clean graphic style that just amazes me :)

Okay, there you have my addictions. Of course I'm addicted to Authentic Artistry as well but I didn't want to list it since I do most of the posting there for the site ;) Hope you all have a great Sunday and hopefully between work and home tomorrow I can get back in here!

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Top Five Songs from my High School Days.......

Well I made it back, that post it note is a great reminder :) I hope it just keeps working!!

Nothing hugely new today, dh still sick with the flu and I'm still staying a MILE away from him, he's quarantined to the bedroom and is only allowed bathroom privileges, LOL. I swear I've sanitized the bathroom 10+ times today. I don't want anyone else here to get, including me! Took ds out today for a while, no where fancy, just wanted out of the house. I'm thinking I MIGHT take him tomorrow to see Horton Hears a Who, it looks really cute and he does want to see it. It will just depend on how I feel and how much work I have to do around here I suppose. I have a mountain of laundry to work through since dh usually does that, ugh!

I bought some AWESOME new goodies tonight that I saw on Tracy Ann's blog. I love and hate when she puts out new products in her shoppe because I ALWAYS have to go shopping and I always spend more than I intend to. Her designs are just divine, I love so many of them and would give my left arm to be on her team. Okay, maybe not the whole arm, how bout the pinky finger? Tracy are you listening? LOL! Go check out those new products on her blog link up there, you'll see what I'm talking bout.

Alrighty then, let's move on to my top five songs from high school. Is it sad that most of these are attributed to my memories from boys? ROFL! These are in no particular order....

1. Don't Know Much -- Linda Rondstadt and Aaron Neville
2. Forever -- Kiss
3. Gonna Make You Sweat -- C&C Music Factory
4. Strike It Up -- Black Box
5. I Do It For You -- Bryan Adams

There were sooooooooo many others that I loved but these are the five that stand out the most to me, the ones that I played over and over and over and well you get the point.

It's time for me to go work on that mountain that I've been putting off. Hope you're having a wonderful Saturday!!

Friday, March 14, 2008

Top Five Hotties.....

Okay, I'm going to try doing some top five posts to get me back in the spirit of personal blogging. I've been doing plenty of site blogging over at Authentic Artistry but have neglected this poor lil blog of mine :( I noticed some of the girls over at the Freak have some top five lists on their blogs so maybe this will help get me in a routine. I stuck a post it here at my computer so I can keep up, LOL.

What's up in my world lately.............hmmmm............not much! I've been working a LOT and I am just completely exhausted lately. I haven't been "resting" well for some reason, I'm thinking it's stress. I sleep every night but just wake up with that exhausted feeling still there which stinks! I was so mentally exhausted yesterday morning that I just had a breakdown over the fact that I could only find one sock in the pair I wanted to wear, WTH? ROFL! My hubby was looking at me like I had three heads I swear! I hope that problem resolves soon though, I just have way too much on the brain lately. And today, Daniel wakes up with what I think is the flu, ick, yuck, I don't want it! I'm just staying far away from him, hehehe. He keeps telling me that I'm supposed to be his wife, his nurse and taking care of him. I agreed and said I would be glad to medicate him and bring him washclothes for his forehead, etc.........but no way am I cuddling up with him right now, LOL.

On the scrap side of things, I haven't done a layout in over a month, eek! I just have no mojo even though I am really missing it, the creativity is not there. I did do some church brochures for my mil and they turned out awesome as always, go figure. I feel like I've let my designers down by not scrapping but I'm hoping they all understand and know that I'll be out of the rut soon! I have a guest spot this month with Shabby Pickle Designs which I'm really excited about, it hasn't started yet because of some delays over there but I'm patiently waiting and hoping to get to play soon!

Alrighty, nuff chatter, on to my top five for the day. Today I'm posting my top five male hotties in the acting/celebrity world today. There's something about each of these men that attracts me, I just lurve looking at them, hehe. This is in NO particular order here.

Will Smith:

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Shemar Moore:

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Dominic Purcell:

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Ty Pennington:

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Jared Padalecki:

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and honorable mention is the other Supernatural brother:

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Well there you have it, five hotties for the day. I'll be back tomorrow with a new top five ;) Have a great Friday!!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Gone Too Soon -- A Belated Freaky Friday Challenge

This week at ScrapFreak, our challenge for blogging was brought on by the sudden and tragic death of Heath Ledger. Out topic this week is our thoughts on celebrities that we think were taken too early and why we miss them. I'm not a HUGE person when it comes to focusing on celebrities (I will at the end) so for now I want to tell you about two stars in my life that are "gone too soon", two people that were ripped away from me and that I would give anything (well almost) to have them back.

The first is my mom, she was my absolute best friend, the ONLY person that I felt that I could trust 100% to always be there for me. The main person that I could tell anything to and not fear hearing her laugh at me. She was had the absolute best heart in the world, she was the type of person others would say is nuts because if she could bring a homeless man into her home and help him out onto his feet she would. She never turned away someone in need even if it did get her scammed in life a couple of times. I would love to find those people who scammed her today and just tell them what I think of them but I know she wouldn't approve of that. Anyhow, I miss her dearly. I miss not having her to call and bend her ear. I miss not having someone in my life that I know without a doubt that I can trust 100% with ANYTHING. I miss having my best friend around. I miss her smile and her laugh. She was the glue for my family and I have slowly watched it unravel without her which saddens me to a point that I can't describe. I miss her!

The second one is the one that I miss the most. My heart aches for him every day of my life, there's not one day that goes by that I don't think of him and remember him. That is my oldest son, Joshua. He was an amazing little boy and three and a half years of him is just not enough. To have him ripped away from me the way that he was is just so wrong, my heart still breaks for that. I wish that I could say that my memories of him are always good but sadly since I was there when we had our house fire and I was there when we let him go, those are often the first memories that come to mind. I hate that too. There are lots of good memories that I have of him, lots of things that I miss. I miss that little stubborn strut he got when he was upset. I miss how he always brought in a crowd with her personality no matter where we went, even in Wal-Mart. I miss his smile and the love that he had for me, his dad and his brother. He was the MOST loving little boy and he always looked for love and was always hugging and kissing us. I miss those hugs the most. He would have been 12 next week, I often sit and wonder how he would be, would he like sports, would he be smart like me, would he be as handsome as I imagine, there are just so many thoughts that race about him. I don't think my heart will ever heal properly but it does get a little easier each day.

Okay, I'm getting all teary so I need to get back to the "real" subject at hand. There are two celebrities that came to mind as soon as I saw our topic this week. The first is Anna Nicole, I know I know, silly and all but I really do hate that she was ripped from this world so soon after her little girl was born. It was so sad to see what her baby girl had to go through after she was gone, so sad to see her tossed around like that by some people that I think probably only cared about the money attached to her. Anna N wasn't so bad, she was rather funny at times to sit and watch her and she was a beautiful girl at all of her weights. The other person that immediately came to mind for me was Tupac Shakur, I LOVED that man's music. I miss his smile. I miss his songs. I miss oogling at him, you have to admit he was easy on the eyes, LOL.

Anywho.........that's my post for this freak challenge. I know it's not totally on topic but it's mine and now I'm done. I have to work the next few days so I won't be around. Holla!

Saturday, January 19, 2008

Another Freaky Friday Challenge -- Our Song

This week over at the Freak, our blog challenge was to post about "our song". Now this song could be with anyone, your spouse, a parent, a sibling, friend, worst enemy, etc.... Okay, I added in that worst enemy part just because I can and no that's not who I'm dedicating this post to. I've had "the song" with a few people in my life, most of them are no longer part of my life, but there is one who is still with me and hopefully always will be, that would be Daniel. He and I met working together at Wal-Mart in 1993. He used to stalk uhm I mean swing by the fitting room where I worked and say Hi and we became really good friends. He asked me out on more than one occasion and got shot down every time because we live in a very small "set in their ways" kind of town and the mixing of races isn't always smiled upon. I thought he was a fabulous guy and he made me laugh like no other. I continued my downward spiral of dating loser after loser but remained friends with him throughout and then finally I gave up on the prejudice thoughts of this town and made the move on him, LOL! We dated for about a year and a halfish and then we got married. Sure, not everyone in our families were happy but hey they got over it and we've been married for almost twelve years now and we have had two wonderful lil men to show for it! Seriously, they were awesome years even with the troubles we had to pull through. I love him like no other and I think he's just as giddy about me *wink wink*

Okay, nuff rambling. Our song came about simply because we didn't agree much when it came to music. I grew up country and he grew up loving rap and hip hop and those genres just don't mix well. There was one group that we both enjoyed -- Aerosmith -- and that's how our song came about. We both just love it and it became "ours". I decided rather than boring you with the lyrics that I would change my video box on here to that so if you haven't already silenced your computer to close it out then you should be well into the lyrics of "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" by now, hehehe. And as for our mix of genres, well those have been fixed now because I can't stand listening to country anymore, go figure. Got tired of the heartaches and lost dogs/wives/money/beer. Before I run off I wanna share this pic of Daniel and I, it's a couple of years old but I love it and have scrapped it a couple times, think I might just scrap it again too, LOL!! Here we are:

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Well I think I have rambled enough and tomorrow if I can get my brain together I'm going to come share some funny things I've found myself or that have been shared in various communities so until then ((HUGS))

Monday, January 14, 2008

Important Message of the Day!!!

Got this in an e-mail tonight from my brother!! He always has the funniest things!

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Important Message for the Day:

NEVER tick off a guy who owns a backhoe!!!

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There you have it! Hope you heed the important message, LOL! Hope you all have a great night too! ((HUGS))

Friday, January 11, 2008

Another Scrap Freak blog challenge.......

Today was the new blog challenge over at Scrap Freak and I wanted to make sure I took part in it again!! Woot!! This has to do with "firsts" and it brought back some fun memories for me :) Here goes:

What was your first.....

1. concert? --- I've only EVER been to one and that was a combo of Alabama, Diamond Rio and Alison Krauss

2. car? --- An OLD Dodge Dart that my parents made me drive. I was soooooo embarrased by that car as a teen but it was probably one of the safest cars I ever drove because it was made so well.

3. job? --- I was a hostess at a seafood restaurant, Captain Petes, and it was a HORRIBLE job. I ended up just quitting one day when I got mad at the boss lady. I was 16 and didn't really NEED the job, just wanted something to do. I think I lasted about six months there and the owner's wife was just horrid to work for, blech.

4. scrapbook layout about? --- I honestly don't know, it had to be about one of my boys.

5. grade teacher's name? --- I'm assuming we're doing first grade? It was Ms. Surratt and she was the best tooth puller ever, LOL!!

6. pet? --- That would be my sweet cat, Blackie! I just loved that cat to pieces, we were like two peas in a pod.

7. vacation as an adult? --- I guess it would be our week long trip to Ohio about eight years ago. We don't vacation much, not like we should anyway.

8. boyfriend's name? --- Glenn Gilliam, there's a funny story to the first kiss there but I'll skip that, hehehe.

9. living arrangement after moving out of your parents' home? --- I moved in with a friend at her mom's house. Her mom was like my other mother except she let us get away with murder and that's pretty much why I wanted to be there, have a lot of regrets from it now though, live and learn.

10. scrapbook message board to be a member on? --- Scrap Angels, ugh, nuff said!

Well there ya go! A little more about me for you :) ((HUGS)) till next time!

Sunday, January 6, 2008

Scrap Freak Challenge!!

Okay, over at Scrap Freak, they have these awesome Freaky Friday challenges (doesn't that just sound fun?!) and you get one week to complete them all except for the altered one, you get a month for it!! Anywho.........they also have a blog challenge and so therefore I'm posting so that I can partake in it. Here are their questions for the New Year and my answers:

1. Will you be looking for a new job? -- Nope! Absolutely have no need, love the one I have.

2. What will you do different in '08? -- Save more and spend less, that's my hopes anyway!

3. New Year's Resolution(s)? -- Not at all! Don't believe in them because I would just ruin them, LOL!

4. Any trips planned? -- No DEFINITE plans but I know that we will take at least a mini vacation somewhere this year since we didn't do anything last year, guess there goes #2 huh? Hehehehe!

5. Wedding plans? -- Noooooooooooooooooooo..........that would involve divorce plans first and that just ain't gonna happen ;)

6. Baby plans? -- Nope! I've been snipped, clipped and burnt!

7. Major thing on your calendar? -- Nothing at all major this year! Just the normal birthdays and anniversaries.

8. What can't you wait for? -- For that mini vacation I'm hoping for, I really need at least a weekend away from home.

9. What would you like to see happen different? -- I would like to see dh take some initiative in his future and maybe go to school or find a job that he loves and not just a place to work.

10. What about yourself will you be changing? -- I hope to be less "negative" on things in my life and start thinking a bit more postitive and I hope to be more organized with certain things.

11. What happened in '07 that you didn’t think would ever happen? -- I left 8 Reynolds and went in to the Float Pool. I always loved 8RT and the people on it but I have since realized how much I needed that change in my life, it's made an amazing difference.

12. Will you be nicer to the people you care about? -- I'm already extremely nice to them but I can try if you're going to make me, LOL.

13. Will you dress differently in '08 than you did in '07? -- Nope! Although I'm doing a major hair overhaul this week, woohoo!

14. Will you better your relationship with your family? -- I hope so!

15. Will you do volunteer work? -- I hope so but I won't promise that.

16. Do you expect '08 to be a good year for you? -- Yes!! (Please refer to #10)

17. How much did you change from this time last year til now? -- Not much but I'm hoping that I do improve this year!

18. Will you still be friends with the same people you are friends with now? -- For the most part I will be.

19. Major lifestyle changes? -- None that I forsee, we do want to eat healthier, keep saying it but just hasn't happened, we'll see.

20. Will you be moving? -- It would be nice but I doubt it.

21. What will you make sure doesn't happen in '08 that happened in '07? -- Prevent debt! We incurred so much debt in 07 due to various things and I just can't deal with that again! I want it all gone!

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Okay, there you have it in -- 2008 in a nutshell! Please take some time and check out the Freak! It's an awesome spot with some rockin' ladies on it :)

((HUGS)) until next time!

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Happy 2008!!

Only a day late! Just wanted to pop in and freshen things up a bit by adding in a new song and updating my Guest CT stuff over there to your right :) I've started a challenge to do a layout a day in January and I'm well on my way! I'll share some later once I've had time to add them to photobucket! Here's wishing you all the happiness you desire in 2008!!