I almost killed his fish.

In our early years of marriage, we lived in southern California. Mitch traveled a lot and I taught and went to school a lot. We were busy people. We also had fish. Fish are Mitch's thing. We had a salt water aquarium when we lived down south, and when we decided to put up our aquarium again in this house, we went with fresh water. My husband is a nature lover, bird-watcher extraordinaire, great-white-hunter and all that. He is incredibly smart and loves to study things that don't really matter to the rest of us. Case in point: fish. I really have no idea how he got started on this, but it was sometime in his youth. He had an aquarium, he studied, blah, blah, blah.

Mitch recently subscribed to a fish magazine. He reads it like I read CK. Crazy. I'm sure he thinks I'm crazy, too!

So, anyway, in our early years of marriage, Mitch went on trips. I was supposed to care for the fish. You know, give them their pinch of food and all that. Well, on more than one occasion (WAY more than one), Mitch would come home to find a floater at the top of the tank. Oops.

Last night, Mitch came home from a 4 day business trip. This morning, he asks me, "Did you feed the fish?"

Uh. Oops.

Don't worry, though. No floaters.

See? This is why I don't have any pets. Except fish.

Old School, Bella Scraps, and new Shoppe and a FREEBIE!

I have so much going on these days that I have totally been neglecting my blog. Here it is in a nutshell:

Mitch has been in Boston since Sunday and I am SO ready for him to come home tonight. I'M ready, but the house isn't. Hee, hee! I've got some work to do!

The September issue of the DST Insider is in the final stages. I'm so excited!! The Insider is free to anyone with a membership to Digishoptalk (and membership is free), so make sure you go over there and register so you can see my first issue as Editor-In-Chief!

Dianne Rigdon released some projects I had been working on at her store at ScrapbookGraphics. See?




They were pretty fun to put together!!

So, last night I thought I would make a notebook for Grant to practice his letters in:



Isn't it CUTE!? I love how this turned out! I put together some brag books with another of her AMAZING paper packs, and I'll let you know when those are released. SERIOUSLY gorgeous. Perfect for baby pics.

Hmm . . . what else? Oh, yeah. Bella Scraps Magazine (an online mag) contacted ME and asked me to be an Instructional Team Member!! That means that I will contribute to the magazine by writing tutorials along with taking pictures of my projects. I get THE BEST free kits. Seriously. All the best designers are featured in Bella Scraps!!

So, to celebrate, I will be giving away one August issue of Bella Scraps Magazine!! I'm not in there yet, but it is GORGEOUS!! You'll come away seriously inspired! Just leave me a comment here in this post by midnight Sunday (Pacific time), and my random number generator (or maybe Grant) will pick one lucky winner, which will be announced on Monday!

If that's not all, I've been working on even MORE projects (when hubby's away, Kelleigh will play!) that I get to post tomorrow, including a truly hybrid layout that I just love, and a few cards.

And, this is perhaps the biggest news of all, I will be selling my templates in a SHOPPE! I'm going to be putting together card templates, mini album templates and regular ol' page templates. I'm so excited! I have SO many ideas whirling around in my head right now. The shoppe will open at the beginning of September (oh, my gosh! That's next week!!), and I'll BE SURE to let you know when that happens!

In the meantime, I thought I'd give you a little freebie to show you the type of thing I'll be putting together.

Here is a card template. (ETA: This template has been removed! Thanks for downloading it! You made my day!)



This is a standard sized card, meaning that it is 5.5 x 4.25 and you should be able to fit 2 of these cards on one piece of 8.5 x 11 paper, which makes these cards VERY economical! Use these templates as you normally would in digital scrapbooking, then flatten and drag the finished product onto a new 8.5 x 11 canvas. Turn the cards so they open correctly. Print. Done. OR, go a little nuts like I did!


Click here for credits.

On this card, I just printed, cut out a little element from the kit, added my own, blue background paper, eyelets and red card base.


Click here for credits.

On this card, I didn't flatten. Instead I merged my paper layer and template layer (clipping mask) and then dragged it onto my page to print. I did this for each layer of the template. I cut out each piece of paper, inked the edges, then glued them down and added my own embellishments.

I DID fit both of these cards on one sheet of 8.5 x 11 paper, thus saving paper, ink and money! Pretty cool, huh?

So, feel free to download my template! I'll be taking the link down on Monday, so HURRY! After this, you will only be able to get the template in my shoppe! (No, I'm not spelling that wrong!)

If you use the template, link us up!! I would love to see what you do with it!

Here are some fun layouts!

Click here for credits.


Click here for credits.

Kinda cutesy and more

Corina released a new paper pack yesterday and I'm having a lot of fun playing!

My church asked me to donate some cards to their auction, so I'm working my hiney off right now trying to finish them up. What do you think?


credits here


credits here


This one is from a collab over at Funky Playground Designs (click on Corina's blinkie over there--->). Sort of a Disney theme. SO CUTE!!

credits here

It's Thursday! Wahoo!

And, as we all know, Thursdays are when I can FINALLY show you some of the stuff I've been working on.

First, some cute little cards just for me!

credits here

And a layout featuring my little sunshine boy. (Eeek! Isn't he gorgeous?!)



credits here

Thanks so much for all the interest in my templates! Makes me happy! If you are looking for them, look down!

EDT: I just discovered that my links to my gallery for credits are not working! I added them to this post and will go work on other posts. Sorry about that!

I'm cracking up!

Okay, I just had to jump on here and share a funny.

Last night, after his bath, I tossed Grant his pajamas and told him that I can't find any underwear, so he is going to have to go commando for the night.

This morning, after he FINALLY got dressed, he came out and said, "I have my clothes on, but I'm still going commando under this."

He cracks me up! I've never explained "Going Commando" and didn't realize he had picked it up.

I love that boy!

Totally in love

I just love this guy! Isn't he stunning?


credits here

Oh, yeah. I forgot to tell you that Corina Nielsen asked me to be on her CT. FREAK!! (You have NO IDEA how cool this is!)

So, sometimes I am playing on the scrapbooking forums and commenting on layouts and stuff like that and I see these gals with just a few blinkies, but they are QUALITY blinkies. I mean, they work for HUGE designers. I used to wonder what that was like to work with your favorite designers and to never have to spend a dime on scrapbooking supplies. Now I know. (And, as soon as I get a blinkie, I'll post it over there ---> with my collection.)

PS - If you're looking for the freebie, look down! And, thanks for visiting!

More cards and a freebie!

Check it out:



credits here


credits here


credits here


credits here

The first 2 cards were creating using my first card template freebie (HERE), and the last two are new designs! I had so much fun making these that I decided to share with you again!



Click HERE for a link to the download!

Don't forget to leave me a comment when you download and let me know if you use these templates! I would love to hear from you!

Weekend fun!

Let me catch you up . . . since I KNOW my life is SO interesting and you are dying of curiosity.

Friday night we went out to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse with Mitch's "boss" and a few SF friends and their spices! It was so much fun! These are some of the same guys who went on the fishing trip with us in Cancun, so you KNOW we had a blast. The conversation was lots of fun, the food was super yummy, and the guys got all pumped up to keep building their businesses. Those are the best kinds of "power dinners".

Another bonus is that our boys spent the night at Mitch's parents' house on Friday night, so we got to sleep in on Saturday! 8:30!! What a treat! After a relaxing morning, Mitch asked me if I wanted to go with him to the Oregon Waterfowl Festival. Well SURE honey! (Good grief!) No really, it was actually fun. My ears were ringing with the sounds of duck calls being blown and heavy metal music pumping up the hunting dogs who were jumping off of the dock into the big pool. Crazy stuff. We walked up and down the isles of the room where Mitch drooled over all of the new duck hunting gadgets including SUPER expensive acrylic duck calls. These things were selling for $100 or more! He says that acrylic is super expensive. I told him he could have one of my acrylic stamping blocks instead of the duck call. He was not amused.

That evening, our boys were returned to us. Gosh, I miss them SO MUCH when we don't see them for a day! I can't imagine our lives without these boys. I picked Cole up and gave him a hug and he started saying, "So funny!" over and over. It was adorable. "Daddy's so funny! Grant's so funny! Mommy's so funny!" My child is finally starting to speak intelligibly. I'm so proud!

On Saturday night, at about 12:30, I still couldn't sleep! My mind was just whirling and I had to really concentrate on relaxing. Finally, I started to relax when I heard bumping and pounding. It sounded like one of the boys was kicking the wall with their feet. I kept expecting to hear one of them run to our room, so I looked out our bedroom door in anticipation. I saw a huge flash of light! I thought, "Who has my camera?" Then, I saw it again and again! So cool! A lightening storm! See, we don't have many lightening storms here in Oregon. In Texas, where I spent my high school years, they were almost a daily occurrence. Here in Oregon, we just get rain. So, after laying there in my room for a few minutes, just seeing flashes and listening to rumbling thunder, I sensed that Mitch was awake. "Are you awake?" I whispered. Sure enough. To make a long story short, we got up and decided to watch the storm outside on our back patio. Most of the neighborhood was up and we heard, "Oooh! Wow!" every few minutes. Sort of like watching fireworks. I finally went back to bed.

Sunday, after church, Mitch took Grant back to the waterfowl festival while I worked on some birthday cards for my sister-in-law and niece. That evening, we celebrated the girls' birthdays at their house. Our boys had so much fun with their cousins. Cole immediately got wet in the kiddie pool and ran around for the rest of the night in nothing but his diaper. We love hanging out with the family!

OK. That's all I have. (Interesting read, wasn't it?) But, look up for a freebie!

More fun!

My friend Deanne came over so I could attempt to teach her how to do digital scrapbooking. It was kind of a flop. I mean, she did great, but I just couldn't teach her how! She has CS and I have Elements. WOW! What a difference. I kept saying, "Just do this . . . uh, where is that button on your screen?" So, basically I learned that I can teach digital scrapbooking to people who have Photoshop Elements, but nothing else. Good grief.

So, anyway, I had a lot of fun! I've never actually digi-scrapped alongside someone before. It is a lot like paper scrapping with someone. So cool!

I worked on a layout:

credits here

Then I was so inspired that I finished a project for Dianne (however it is not REALLY done, so wait until I put up a "check it out!" link).

AND, I finished up another layout this evening while watching TV! So cool. I love this hobby!


credits here


By the way, in case you missed it, there is a freebie on the post below this one!

AND, an update on my quest to be a member of Nicole Seitler's CT: I'm IN!! Wahoo! Yeah. She said yes. Well, actually she said, "You already had the 1st spot waiting for you..." Ahh. Nicole, my mother is going to kill you for stroking my ego once again. I am SO excited!!!! Seriously. Wahoo!

New projects and a freebie!

I always love Thursdays because that is when I get to post my new layouts and projects that I created for The Digichick!

First up is this adorable (in my opinion!) mini album that I made out of Red Robin coasters. It was a fun and fairly easy project. I originally made it with the idea that I would be donating it to our church's auction, but then I fell in love and decided to keep it for myself. I figured that the people who saw it probably wouldn't understand how much time I put into it, and it wouldn't bring in much money anyway. No guilt for me!

Anyway, I created the pages in Photoshop, shrunk them down to fit the coasters (3.5 x 3.5), printed them, added some elements that I later cut out, glued it all down, then added pictures. (Of course, I wrote all of that on my picture, right?)

I just LOVE these pictures of my boys!


Of course, I was so inspired by these baby pictures that I HAD to look at them again. So, I did this layout:



I love that boy!! (By the way, that would be Grant. I usually mark their layouts with an initial so that when I'm 80 and can't tell which is which, I can look for the "G" or "C". Call it a trademark. Kind of like how Thomas Kinkaid hides initials in his paintings!)

AND, I was so inspired by these GORGEOUS papers that I had to keep creating. I'm a little obsessed with this designer - Sugarplum Paperie: Nicole Seitler. I've actually begged to be on her CT. I've never done that before. So far, I've been denied. (Kind of. She didn't actually have any room on her CT.) Now, she is having a hybrid call and I am BEGGING to be on her Creative Team!! The suspense is killing me. I've never actually asked a designer to be on her CT when she hasn't been having a call. I've never been denied when I have applied for a call. My mother tells me that I need to be rejected by a designer just once so that I will learn some humility. (Lord, please don't teach me a lesson this time!! I really want to be on her CT!!) BTW - Nicole said she was going to start subscribing to my blog, so hopefully she will see this post.


Anywhoooo . . . Here are the cards I created:




And, I created some template as I was making these cards, so I decided to share these with you! Here is the link to pick up your freebie!




Please leave me a comment if you download them, and link me up to your creation if you use them! I would love to leave you some love!

Happy Boy

Couple of announcements

Digishoptalk has the HUGEST digital gallery and is THE PLACE to be if you are into digital scrapbooking. It is the first place I posted a layout and was basically my introduction into the digital world. The membership is currently at 16,068, but check back tomorrow because there will probably be another 50 people becoming members overnight. It is a seriously HUGE place. When you are on a Creative Team, the designer always asks you to post in 3 places. One of them is always DST.

So, about a month ago, I responded to a call to be the new Editor-In-Chief of the Digishoptalk Insider. The Insider is a monthly online publication that is available to DST members for download. It contains relevant articles, tutorials and challenges as well as ads from designers, coupons, announcements, etc. Pretty cram packed with good stuff. The Insider is downloaded by approximately 3000 members, give or take. I figured I didn't really have a shot, but I wrote up a quick little email listing my qualifications and sent it off.

About a week later, the announcement was finally posted. There was MY NAME listed under Editor-In-Chief! FREAK!! Can you even believe it? Makes me wonder if anyone else applied! Ha!

So, I'm really excited to begin this new adventure. I'm jumping in with two feet! September will be my first issue and it's gonna be GOOD! As the new Editor-in-Chief, I'm supposed to pick a theme for the issue (which is SO much fun!), then communicate it to the rest of the staff. I'll come up with ideas for features for the month. I get to hand out assignments (like in the movies!) and find guest contributers, PLUS I will write the "From the Desk of the Editor" column every other month (trading off with Shannon, the founder). I'll probably write a column every once in a while. SO COOL.

On to other news:

Remember this little tin I made? You can now buy the project and do it yourself! How fun is that? Thank you Dianne Rigdon (did you know she designs for Prima, too?)! I love working with you!!



Look closely and you will see my name on the preview in 2 places! And look! There's Mitch with his shirt off! Hee, hee!