Friday, December 31, 2010

Looking Back at 2010

As 2010 draws to a close and 2011 is emerging, I like taking the time to reminisce about our year. Sporadically throughout the year, I created Month in Review pages and doing a Year in Review page seemed to be the perfect conclusion to Project 365 for me.


Here is a look at my Year in Review.



As you can see, we celebrated birthdays, the first day of school, a kindergarten graduation, family, love, going to the Happiest Place on Earth and many many other events but these pictures seemed to represent our year. Sure there were some challenges but this another layout! (Watch this blog for that layout!) :-)

On the whole, these pictures celebrated us, our family and that is how I will remember 2010 as we welcome in 2011! I'd also like to take the opportunity to thank each of you for dropping by my blog - I appreciate and read every comment and email. It warms my heart to hear from you and know that you read this blog. This blog has been neglected over the past month due to volunteer commitments, illnesses and holiday preparations but I've got lots to share so do pop back in 2011!

Happy New Year!

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Enough Already?

OK I will admit it! Sometimes I continue to take pictures of my girls well beyond the sweet spot of picture taking! But a girl has to practice; doesn't she?

Here is a layout celebrating those less than spectacular pictures! Those pictures are not technically great by any means but they capture some pretty funny faces!



Supplies: Close to my Heart (cardstock); Tinkering Ink (pattern paper); Prima (bling alphas); Maya Road (chipboard butterflies); Dazzlers (flowers); ribbon (source unknown); Fancy Pants (rub ons)

I am mighty proud of myself for using up alot of odds and sods that were verrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry old!

Thanks for dropping by!

Monday, November 29, 2010

Gift Cards!!!

Are you like me? I am always on the hunt for interesting, beautiful but simple and elegant gift card holders. And this is the season for giving...gift cards!


Here are a couple of gift card holders that I will be using this year - I hope you like them!

Firstly, I wanted to write a few words in my card for the recipient so I created a holder for the front of the card.


Supplies: Urban Lily (pattern papers); American Crafts (rub ons, ribbon); brads (source unknown); Cuttlebug (die cut)



And I used the Urban Lily Swirl Memory Photocards to create an envelope for the gift card below. With the addition of a few rub-ons, I was done in minutes!

Supplies: Urban Lily (photocards); stitching; American Crafts (rub ons)

Thank you for letting me share!

Monday, November 22, 2010

A Sweet Box

When I wrap a gift, I like my gift to have presence, to evoke emotion and to look pretty. I wish for breathtaking but I will take pretty! Here is a cute box that I made while testing out the Scor-Buddy and I can see many more in my future!



Supplies:  Making Memories (pattern papers, ribbon, flowers)

Thanks for letting me share!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Urban Swank Blog Hop

***My apologies Blog Hoppers*** I don't exactly know why the pictures disappeared but the links are all fixed now! Thank you for coming back! :-)



Welcome Welcome Welcome!!! Today is the Urban Swank Blog Hop!

I am so so SO excited to be participating in the Urban Swank blog hop :-) We were asked to create Christmas themed projects in honour of the upcoming holiday season. Well, what a fantastic assignment! I absolutely adore Christmas; don't you?

Here is my project - an adorable divided box with an enchanting box and a matching paper Christmas tree!


Here is a close-up of the box top.


I had an absolute blast creating this project and I can definitely see myself creating more of these boxes!

Thanks for dropping by to see my project! And participating in the blog hop...now go check out the other girls' blogs, ok?

Becky Teichmiller
Erika Taylord
Rachel Theall
Virginia Wong  <------You are here
Marci Knecht   <------ Click here to go to the next blog
Pauline Dirrig
Simona Gughi
Gayle Martin
Michelle Van Etten
Candra George

Don't forget to end at the Urban Swank blog and check out the Urban Swank Facebook page. Becky has some fun fun prizes for one lucky reader!

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Just One Word

They say a picture says a thousand words...but there are times when I think you only need to say one word to convey your thoughts and emotions. My challenge at the recent Scrap Shotz online Heros and Villians crop was to use one and only one word as the title of your layout.

Here is my one word titled layout, "Mwah!"


Supplies:  BasicGrey (pattern paper, die cut stickers, border stickers); Heidi Swapp (alphas); American Crafts (ribbon)

Thank you so much for dropping by!

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Puhleez

"Puhleez...Mommy...we are in love..." That 5 word phrase was chanted over and over and over by the girls when my friends, John and Mary Lou Fellows came for a visit and brought their adorable dogs too! Madison and Danielle could not keep their eyes off the dogs. They were smitten immediately. Here is my layout showing their love to the dogs...



Supplies:  The Girls Paperie (pattern paper); BasicGrey (chipboard alphas, chipboard die cut shapes); Elles Studio (journaling spot); Tattered Angels (glimmer mists); EK Success (border punch); stitching; Cosmo Cricket (mini alphas)

Thanks for dropping by!

Sunday, November 14, 2010

A Hard Lesson Learned

I've had these pictures for awhile...not quite sure how to scrap them. It was a learning experience for sure for Danielle but it was also quite funny. Danielle didn't quite see the humour at the time especially when I was snapping pictures of her :-) I must say that I was SO impressed with Danielle when took responsibility for her actions. When the incident happened, she immediately told me what had happened. She didn't lie or gloss over the details. Yes, she was sobbing but she was truthful; I like truthful!!!

Here is my Responsible Munchkin!


Here is a close-up of the chipboard and row of bling!


Supplies:  BasicGrey (pattern papers, die cut stickers, chipboard, alphas, borders); Kaisercraft (gems); American Crafts (ribbon); Versamagic (chalk)

Thanks for dropping by!

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Lest We Forget

In the last 2 weeks, Dominic and I have fielded alot of questions about the various wars. It is interesting conversation for a 10 and 6 yr old at the dinner table ... that is for sure.

Please take a moment to remember those who served in our honour today.

Monday, November 8, 2010

Sugar Shack

Every spring, the French Immersion kids celebrate Cabane a sucre (Sugar Shack)! They receive a decadent treat - maple taffy and sometimes a pancake breakfast. I missed the pictures when Madison celebrated Cabane a Sucre in Grade 1 and I didn't want to miss it for Danielle.

Here is my story of Danielle's experience; she loved it!!!

Supplies:  Kiki Art (pattern paper, chipboard glitter heart)' American Crafts (alphas); stitching

Thanks for dropping by!

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Want to Join Me???

This weekend Scrap Shotz is hosting one of their amazing online crops. The theme is Heros & Villians. Intriguing, yes? As well, Scrap Shotz uses one of its challenges to support a charity; this time the charity is Terry Fox. I hope you will join me Friday November 5 at 800 pm EST online for a weekend of scrapping and inspiring challenges!

Here are a few sneak peeks-


I hope to see you tomorrow night!

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Favorite Photos

It's been about 2 months since I have finished Wendy Schulz's Beginner Photography course. I miss it, really and truly. It was a fantastic course; I learned so much. What I have learned the most is that there is just so much more for me to learn! And that I love taking pictures that much more!

Here are some of my favorite photos from the class-









Thanks for letting me share!

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Layout Tag

Have you ever played Layout Tag? It is fun...someone creates a layout based on a scraplift from another layout. They send their scraplift to you and you scraplift an element from that layout and so on.

Here is my scraplift and contribution to the layout tag.


Supplies:  Bazzill (cardstock); The Girls' Paperie (pattern papers), ribbon (source unknown); Urban Lily (chipboard circle); Kaisercraft (pearls); Making Memories (flowers); stitching

Thanks for letting me share.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Valerie Salmon Sketch #104

I love Valerie Salmon sketches; who doesn't??? I am always so honoured to contribute to her blog. Here is my interpretation of Sketch #104.


And I loved it so much that I made another using different papers!


What do you think? Easy peasy, yes?

Sunday, October 17, 2010

1940

One of the recent challenges at The Inspired Scrapper was "Focus on Family." I thought alot about this challenge because the primary reason for me to start scrapbooking was to capture the stories of my family. This challenge made me examine why I scrapbooked. I realized that I was definitely focussing on my family, telling the good and the not-so-good but I also realized I don't scrapbook much about me or my ancestors. Then I realized I had a precious photo of Jean, my father in law, my girls' grandfather when he was a boy. I knew instantly it was the perfect photo for the challenge.

The layout is below.



Supplies:  Graphic45 (pattern papers, die cut stickers, alphas, buttons, envelope); EK Success border punch

Friday, October 15, 2010

Scrap Shotz Fall Crop

Are you doing anything on October 16? If not, come scrap with me at the Scrap Shotz Fall Crop. It is 13 hours of glorious scrapping with snacks and a store on site!!! So what are you waiting for???

Hope to see you there!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Little Lady

As part of the Focus on Family challenge with The Inspired Scrapper, I created a layout with the adorable Cosmo Cricket papers.

I love how these pictures captured Danielle taking the next step in her swimming journey with her ladybug!



Supplies:  Cosmo Cricket (pattern papers, die cut border stickers, die cuts); American Crafts (alphas); Prima (gem parentheses)

Thanks for letting me share!

Monday, October 11, 2010

Come On, Get Happy

Ever have moments where you just want to be happy and it just isn't working out? Be it a challenging day at work or with the kids or with the traffic or just anything! Come on, we all have those days! Being a scrapbooker, I don't just scrapbook the good. Yes, I scrapbook the oh-not-so-good because that is what my life is really really like. It's a blend of the good and the not-so-good and I want my girls to know that.

So here is a layout documenting the not-so-good time we had in the summer of 2009 with Madison. I don't know what was bugging her but she was being a real turkey for the whole summer. By the time we arrived in Saskatchewan, she was a ginormous turkey. The only time she smiled was at the playground and well, I just had to snap some photos because I wasn't sure when the next time I would see her smile!



Supplies:  October Afternoon (pattern paper, die cuts); American Crafts (alphas); Bazzill (cardstock)

Thanks for letting me share! (And yes, she was a turkey for the rest of the summer...and I was almost eyebrow-less! LOL)

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving!

It has been years since I have spent Thanksgiving in Saskatchewan. Quite frankly, I love spending Thanksgiving in Saskatchewan. I love the genuine sincerity and thankfulness of our farming community. They exemplify what Thanksgiving truly means - thankfulness that the harvest is complete.

I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving! Enjoy your turkey, pumpkin pie and yams! *slurp*

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Yodel-LEI-eeehooo!!!

Trust Danielle to invent a *need* for a necklace! LOL And truthfully, I was happy to oblige with this Kiki Art necklace!

Here is a close-up of how the flowers were strung together - yes that is jigsaw pattern paper. It works beautifully as a flower necklace!



Here is a close-up of a very happy little girl!


Supplies:  Tim Holtz (flower die); Kiki Art (pattern paper); ribbon (source unknown); Kaisercraft (pearls)

Thanks for dropping by!

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Too Early For Christmas!

Is it ever too early for Christmas? Nah! I love Christmas everything...the songs, the papers, the decorations...everything! And I just adore this Kaisercraft Advent Calendar!



Supplies:  Kaisercraft Advent Calendar (Kaisercraft, alphas); Graphic45 (pattern papers); Tattered Angels glimmer mist

Thanks for dropping by!

Sunday, October 3, 2010

A Different Point of View

What I love about my girls is that they show me, no they force me, to see every day life from a different point of view. I am embarrassed to admit that there are times when I look at life and it all seems the same but when my girls tell me about what they have seen and experienced, it then becomes completely fresh and new. And seeing life every single day with a fresh set of eyes is such a gift.

Here is my layout celebrating that gift.



Below are close-ups of the layout. I made this bird myself :-)


The sun was made by myself too...and the sun always shines when we go to the park!


Supplies:  Kiki Art (pattern papers); American Crafts (alphas, journaling pen); gems (source unknown)

Thanks for letting me share!

Friday, October 1, 2010

World Cardmaking Day

Happy World Cardmaking Day! While I struggle with making cards, I do indeed love giving and receiving cards! So even though I find cardmaking challenging, I still continue making cards! (Some day...it will get easier!)

Here are a few cards that I have made using Urban Lily papers - yum!





Thanks for letting me share! Have a wonderful World Cardmaking Day!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Your Vantage Point

My kids through their inquisitive minds challenge me every single day to view life from a different vantage point. I love that! I apply this principle to my everyday life...be it resolving kid related issues, cooking without all the ingredients in my pantry or scrapbooking! Yes you heard it right, scrapbooking! How do I do that you might ask??? Well, instead of using the papers in a collection, I look to see how I can mix and match between collections. It really is that simple ... to look at life from a different vantage point.

Here is my layout...


Here are a couple of close-ups of the items on my layout. This little birdie was made with scraps of pattern paper - can't let even a smidge go to waste! The faux stitching was made with a pen.



Here is my sun - my youngest brightens everyone's day every single day!



Thanks for letting me share!

-Virginia

Friday, September 17, 2010

Slurp!

Here is another Urban Swank (Urban Lily) project for you!

If there is one food group that my girls adore, that would be marshmallows! LOL We save marshmallows for the special-est of occassions...like the start of school! 



I could not resist sharing that I caught Danielle sneaking into the marshmallows during the photo shoot! LOL She is incorrigible!



And here is her reaction to sneaking a marshmallow!



Thanks for letting me share!

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

A Head of the Class!

We are now into our 3rd week of school and things are starting to get into a smooth routine. Now I feel I can breathe a bit easier. Yes there are still some kinks to iron out with each girls' curriculum but we are moving ahead and that feels great!

I'd like to share an Urban Swank (Urban Lily) project with you. Danielle wanted a special tiara aka headband to celebrate the start of school. So I happily obliged!



Supplies:  Urban Lily (pattern papers); Tim Holtz dies; ribbon and buttons (source unknown)

Well one child cannot have a headband and not the other so...



Supplies:  Urban Lily (pattern papers); Tim Holtz dies; ribbon and buttons (source unknown)

Thanks for letting me share!

Monday, September 6, 2010

Changes

Last week, well actually August 31, marked a day of change in our household. My youngest, Danielle, started Grade 1. I don't know who cried more, me or her. I miss that munchkin but I know she is ready for Grade 1. I must admit that the house is very quiet without her puttering with me, sharing stories and laughing together but now I have more stories to be heard at 340 pm.

It was a tough week for my munchkin. We had a couple days of "Mommy I miss too much to go to school" and then we had the "Playground Punch Incident." Yeah, you read it right...my happy go lucky, not a care in the world, sensitive, sweet baby girl could punched in the face on the playground during noon hour recess. And the worst thing was I was at the school, well, at the front of the school and she was at the back. I was walking to her to say good bye when I saw a boy grab her, pin her arms and a BIG girl wind up and punch her in the face. I felt instantly sick to my stomach and mad as Hell as I saw her head snap back and the perpetrators drop her to the ground. I yelled but who the heck is going to hear me over the din of 550 children outstide on a crisp fall weather day??? When I got to her, the perpetrators had already left the vicinity and I checked over her injuries and bruised ego. The inside of her cheek was cut from a tooth and her face had a slight bruise. I was mad, damn mad. So mad that I could not walk into the school and tell her home room teacher. I actually felt like lining up all 500 kids outside and finding the kids that did this. But instead I went home to cool off and get some control. I wrote a note to her teacher who spent time talking to Danielle the next day. Fortunately there was a supervising teacher outside that helped Danielle until I got there but I seriously hope this is not a sign of things to come and that this was a random attack...because I am on the look-out now.

Here is my munchkin as we get ready to walk to the bus. Take note of the matching purple backpack that is almost as big as her! (Have you guessed that purple is her favorite colour?)



This is what Grade 5 looks like!  New haircut, spanking brand new chocolate brown jeggings and all of our supplies! Grade 5 has been a blast!



A reassuring hug from big sister to little sister! (Danielle was quite anxious about starting Grade 1, especially since Madison was not in the Elementary school anymore.)



All in all, it was a successful start to school! I know that this year will be big for both girls...I am a bit sad that they are growing up so quickly but happy that they are excited to embrace all the changes! (But are we ready for the changes?) :-)

Thanks for dropping by!

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Afternoon Delights with Kiki Art

Every year we go to Saskatchewan to visit with my Mom. My girls love love love it! Why? They can ride their bikes anywhere. My Mom spoils them rotten. They swim every day. My Mom spoils them rotten. They play mini golf, go to the old fashioned ice cream parlour, hang from the top rung of the monkey bars and just all around soak up the sun. My Mom spoils them rotten. And they just explore for hours outside. Did I mention that my Mom, their grandma, spoils them??????

Here is a layout that captures our afternoon of exploring the market gardens of a former class mate.



Supplies:  Kiki Art (pattern papers, chipboard heart); American Crafts (Slick writer for stitching, alphas); house, sun and grass designs are my own.

Thanks for dropping by!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Capturing the Fickle Pre-Teen Years

Madison is my oldest. When she is happy and sweet, she is amazing! When is grouchy and moody, eek...watch out! Do you have days like that? Well, my life isn't perfect and here is a layout that captures one of my life's imperfections. :-)



Supplies:  Urban Lily (pattern papers), BasicGrey (alphas); Tattered Angels (glimmer mist); chipboard parentheses (source unknown); Glitz Designs (large black gems); BasicGrey (small black gem strips)

Thanks for dropping by!