6 Month Calendar Page

Here is another calendar page that I got done - this one was inspired by another layout from the August 2009 PageMaps, but I had this last Level 1 page left from my Stardust pack and I put the two ideas together.

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Click on the picture to view it larger.

And a close-up of the 'notebook paper' that I created with the Comments stamp and a sneak peek at the upcoming December SOTM, Notice the Details - I embossed the edge onto the paper, then used my Crop-a-dile to punch the holes and cut along the edge.

Products Used (All CTMH): Stardust Paper Pack and Stickease, Rustic Numbers, Hodge Podge Alphabet, Comments stamp set, Notice The Details stamp set.

Check back tomorrow for another calendar page - it's one of my favorites! Thanks for looking!

Oh, and if you'd like to check out all the calendar pages, you can view them at the following links:

Birth Month
1 Month Old
2 Months Old

3 Months & 4 Months

5 Months

On A Roll...

...and it feels so good to be scrapbooking again! This last weekend I got caught up on Trysten's calendar and even a little ahead of myself - you'll see why in a couple of days. For now here is his 5 month page! I used a layout from the August 2009 PageMaps - I just rotated it once clockwise. This was a super quick layout - the Stickease added just the right touches without taking a lot of time. Looking at it now, I wish I would have placed the picture higher on the page, but I'm still pleased with how it came out.

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You can click on the picture to view it larger.

Products Used (All CTMH): Stardust Paper Pack and Stickease, Rustic Numbers, Hodge Podge Alphabet, Circle Around stamp set.

Check back tomorrow for his 6 month page - thanks for looking!

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Oh, and if you'd like to check out all the calendar pages, you can view them at the following links:
Birth Month

1 Month Old

2 Months Old
3 Months & 4 Months

Full Heart

Some say that scrapping is better than therapy - if I'm having a rough time and I get a chance to sit down and scrapbook for myself, it sure makes me feel good to reflect on past memories and take a chance to count my blessings! I started this page shortly after Ghostbuster died - I had it all done, just needed to glue it all together and print up my journaling, but I just never got around to it. This summer has been so busy and what little creative time I could find has been spent making Birthday cards and other non-scrapbooking items. Anyway, at the end of last week I was feeling really drained and then due to David's migraine and then an allergic reaction, we ended up just relaxing and staying home for the weekend. That down time gave me a good chance to finish up my 'therapy' piece.
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I've been wanting to use this title since I saw it way back in the spring of 2008, but then I got pregnant again, so I wanted to wait until I could include the new baby. As soon as I took this picture back in March I knew it would be perfect and I've been wanting to do this page since then, I'm glad I finally got a chance!

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You can click on the picture to view it larger.

My journaling is hidden behind the picture - pull it out by the attached Cocoa Edge Anchor. It just talks about how many times someone tells me that I sure have my hands full, but I love every one of my kids and wouldn't change it for the world!

Products Used: Perfect Day paper, Fancy Cuts Botanicals, Field Trip Alphabet, Hodge Podge Alphabet, Cocoa and Juniper brads, Colonial White ribbon, Moon Doggie WOTG guide (left page).

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I got a couple more pages done this weekend so be watching for more to be shared this week - it's good to be doing pages again!

I almost forgot...

...to post these family pictures that we took in Star Valley. I am quickly realizing how hard it is to get a family of 6 to all be smiling and looking at the camera at the same time!

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David was off loading something into the Yukon so we decided to start without him while the kids were all happy - but somewhere Brailee picked up a stick that she proudly displayed for the camera.

So we get her to put the stick down but then she decides to be silly and cover her eyes. And Trysten sees Daddy walking up to join our picture so he's all smiles!

So then Daddy joins the picture and Brailee decides she's done being happy and Trysten decides to chew on my shoulder (a common thing lately).

I turn Trysten around and we get Brailee somewhat happy again so this is the best we got for a family picture - whew!

Squirt

That is one of Trysten's nicknames and unfortunately he is living up to it! Out of all four kids he is the messiest! I won't go into too many details - I'll just say that we are now in a size 4 diaper and we are experimenting with the different brands to find one that works the best. The girls were all able to use the cheap WalMart brand of diapers but it looks like we are going to have to use the good stuff on Trysten. I have tried about every brand of stain remover out there as well. My girls were never like this - or not this bad, anyway - so it's been different! We're often the joke of the day at church as there have been some days I've had to change his clothes a couple of times - and that's only within 3 hours! Little stinker...literally!

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Maybe that's why he's smiling all the time - he just thinks it's funny ;-) At least he loves his bath time so he can get nice and clean - he loves to splash and get Mommy all wet, too!

Reunion Fun!

It seems like I just can't stay caught up this summer - so busy! It has been about 3 weeks but I'm finally getting around to posting about the DeVries Family Reunion we had. It was a fun weekend at the Reservoir - playing in the water, roasting marshmallows, playing Capture the Flag, and too much yummy food! I got to ride a Jet Ski for the first time ever - what fun! And my nephews were teaching me the proper technique for Tubing - I sure used some muscles that haven't been used for a while! Here are some of my favorite pictures - I only took 400 so it wasn't too hard to narrow it down ;-P

We played Capture the Flag Saturday morning - it got a little too crazy for the little kids but the big kids (including David, his brothers, and even his Mom) sure had fun!

Then this last weekend we went to Star Valley to spend some time with some of my family. It was also my 10 year High School Reunion so we spent a couple of hours there catching up with some old friends. There were a lot of friends that didn't show up so I was bummed that I didn't get to see them - it's been the whole 10 years since I've seen some of them! We did have fun while in the valley, though. We rode horses and 4-wheelers, went to the fair parade, and enjoyed the beauties of Star Valley! Even Trysten enjoyed the 4-wheeler rides, they put him right to sleep. We took a nice long one on Saturday - we packed a lunch and left right from the house and headed up to Cottonwood Lake. We went up to the slide area where Alan and two others were killed in an avalanche in January 2008. Then we found a nice little spot by a stream to enjoy our picnic. After that we headed back to the lake where we skipped stones and just relaxed on the shore before heading back. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the weekend...

Brianna was jumping on the tramp...

...and Trysten thought it was quite funny!

My Life According to Elton

I saw this on my friend Camie's blog and decided to play along!

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My Life According to...

Using only song names from ONE ARTIST, cleverly answer these questions. Try not to repeat a song title. It's a lot harder than you think! Repost as "my life according to (band name)"

Pick your Artist:

Elton John

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Describe yourself:

Island Girl - yeah, right - but it's better then the other song I was thinking ;-P

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How do you feel:

Blessed

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Describe where you currently live:

Honky Chateau

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If you could go anywhere, where would you go:

Holiday Inn

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Your favorite form of transportation:

Rocket Man

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Your best friend:

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

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You and your best friend are:

The Captain and the Kid

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What's the weather like:

One Day at a Time

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Favorite time of day:

Indian Sunset

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If your life was a TV show, what would it be called:

Circle of Life

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What is life to you:

Wouldn't Have It Any Other Way

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Your relationship:

Can You Feel the Love Tonight

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Your fear:

And the House Fell Down

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What is the best advice you have to give:

We All Fall In Love Sometimes

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Thought for the Day:

Believe

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How I would like to die:

Madman Across the Water

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My soul's present condition:

I'm Still Standing

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My motto:

I Must Have Lost it on the Wind

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Try it! It's fun!

What's in the box, dear?

...says my dear hubby Monday night.

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"Oh, just new toys for me and the girls" I reply.

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What is it you may ask - it's my new Cuttlebug!!! I have been wanting one for FOREVER but I was somehow able to resist the urge. Then a couple weeks ago I saw a really great bundle on HSN so I called my SIL Sandy ( I can blame everything on her, she is an enabler ;-P ) to let her know about the specials they were having. She already has a Cuttlebug but I thought she might like the new embossing folders. Anyway she kept asking if I was going to get it or not and I hadn't quite decided yet and after a while she finally informed me that she had planned on getting me one for my birthday. So I finally broke down and ordered the bundle and she ordered me the new folders for my birthday instead. So now I am a proud Cuttlebug owner! The girls and I finally opened it up yesterday and started playing with it. The girls already have a CuttleKids and I originally thought about getting rid of theirs since I was getting the real deal but now I've decided that we'll keep both, which will be easier with 4 girls playing ;-)

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Hopefully the new toy will inspire some new creations - I've been missing scrapping! I've made lots of cards lately, but I started (and nearly finished) two pages mid-June and haven't touched them since - I need to get my mojo back!

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So, now I'd love to hear your thoughts - what are your favorite dies or embossing folders to use with the Cuttlebug?

Fair Results 2009

The girls and I entered some stuff again in the county fair this year - here it all is...

The girls were in the Kidz Stuff category and all participants get a ribbon for participating, but here is how my stuff did:

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My flip-up pages featuring Ghostbuster from 1985-2007 got a first and then a Champion ribbon and a $25 gift certificate from Ben Franklin crafts - good to know that Ghostbuster is still helping me win big! Here are the pages closed...

And they open up to this...

This page of Kaylee and Brianna won 1st place

This page of Brailee won something but I'm not sure what ;-P When I went down to the fairgrounds to look at the exhibits, I thought I remember seeing a Third place ribbon on it. I was out of town when they released all entries so I had a friend pick them up for me and there was no ribbon when I got it back, but the entry tag says "R" under Placing so maybe it got Red for Second? All of my First place entries have "B" there which I assume means Blue for First.

Here are the cards that I entered:

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I took this card from this workshop and turned it into a baby announcement using the Sweet Baby stamp set. I also added the words 'little one' from the Random Thoughts stamp set under Hello. Here it is before...

...and after. This card won First place.

This card was created for this workshop - it also won First.

This card won First as well.

I also entered the next two cards but I don't remember how they did - when I told my friend what projects to pick up for me I totally forgot about these ones so I didn't get them back ;-P I think the invitation got Second but I don't remember the owl.

Update - I went down to the fair grounds today and picked up these two cards - they both won First!

I also entered two of these ornaments in the Recycled paper sculpture contest - they won First. If you remember from when I posted them in December, they are made from old Christmas cards.

This was my first year entering photographs - here is what I entered. Only half of what I entered actually placed - I was really surprised with how some of them did - one of my absolute favorites didn't even place, and one I just threw in to get it in the category ended up winning Second. I look forward to entering more next year!

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This one of Trysten got Second in the colored portraits category.

This one got Second in the Patriotic themed category

This one got First in the candid black and white category.

This one got first in the any other b&w photo category.

The following pictures didn't place but I still love them ;-P

Thanks for looking!

SOTM Blog Hop!

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring August's SOTM, which is called It's Your Day, a set of 26 stamps.

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This is the beginning of the hop - I hope you'll check out each of the participating blogs - this month we have 64 Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their creations using this month's SOTM and other great CTMH products on their blogs. This is simple to do - just click on the link at the end of the post on each blog to move to the next one! Here we go!
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Since I'm always making birthday cards, this was the perfect stamp set to play with - I have three samples to share with you today!

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Wishes Pattern - Gallery

I made the following card for my nephew who just turned 8 in July - I used one of Jeanette's Color Me Monday challenges, I just left out the color Bamboo. I used the cake layers to create a frame around the sentiment. Colors used: Clover Meadow, White Daisy, Heavenly Blue




Wishes Pattern - Lower Layers

I made this one for my mom's husband who also had a birthday in July. I struggle with masculine cards but I was pleased with how this one turned out - I love those Back Country papers!




I made the following card for a friend back in May for her birthday - I used two challenges for this card, a kwernerdesign color challenge and a Mojo Monday sketch challenge. I did a lot of dry embossing and sanding on this card - I stamped the bow stamp on the back of the Hollyhock paper, then traced with a stylus and sanded the front to create the starburst look. I added punched circles of Sunflower to the centers. Colors used: Hollyhock, Sunflower, Chocolate






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I hope you have enjoyed your visit here - now "Hop" on over to Kristie's Blog to see her work! Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their Blogs to get some great crafting ideas and other fun ideas! Remember, the August SOTM is only available until August 31st! Contact your CTMH Consultant (or click here) to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount or even free!
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If you get lost on the hop or find links that aren't working, here is a complete list of participating blogs:


Jena DeVries ~ http://livelovelaughscrapbook.blogspot.com/2009/08/sotm-blog-hop.html
Kristie Horness-Herdener ~ http://goofyscrapper.blogspot.com/2009/07/its-here.html
Carla Ironside ~ http://carlacreates.blogspot.com/2009/08/ctmh-august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Deb Young ~ http://scrapbookczar.blogspot.com/2009/08/ctmhs-august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Alanna Moses ~ http://damoses.blogspot.com/2009/08/its-your-day.html
Paige Dolecki ~ http://paigespaperparadise.blogspot.com/2009/07/ctmh-its-your-day-august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Wendy Kessler ~ http://www.myscrapbookingblog.com/2009/08/01/ctmh-august-2009-sotm-blog-hop/

Heather Painchaud ~ http://twindragonflydesigns.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-blog-hop.html
Helen Onulak ~ http://www.hookedonstamping.com/index.php/cards/august-stamp-of-the-month-blog-hop/
Barbra Otten ~ barbraotten.blogspot.com
Haley Dyer ~ http://inkyscrapper.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-close-to-my-heart-stamp-of-month.html
Nona Davenport ~ http://nonapearl.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Michelle Robinson ~ http://amaizenbluelady.typepad.com/my_crazy_scrappin_times/2009/08/august-ctmh-stamp-of-the-month-blog-hop.html
Cindy Leek ~ http://paperspadsandpictures.blogspot.com/2009/07/ctmh-august-stamp-of-month-blog-hopa.html
Melissa Laverty ~ http://fancymelissa.blogspot.com/2009/08/its-your-day-ctmh-august-stamp-of-month.html
Katy Donaldson ~ http://scrappinkaty.blogspot.com/2009/08/its-your-day-blog-hop.html
Amy McVey ~ http://clearlystamping.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Tammy Lea Pinchard ~ http://creativeimpressions-pinchme.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-blog-hop.html
Leslie Markland ~ pandascrapper.blogspot.com
Judy Burger ~ makingtimeformemories.blogspot.com
Laurie R Newton ~ scrapsfromthebeach.blogspot.com
Kami Welter ~ http://scrappin4memories.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Tracy Oleksak ~ http://mamaolie.blogspot.com/2009/08/ctmh-august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Karen Norman ~ http://gettinscrappywithit.blogspot.com/2009/07/welcome-to-our-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Chris Shouse ~ http://houseostamps.wordpress.com/2009/07/31/blog-hop-august-stamp-of-the-month/
Cibele Glazer ~ http://flowerfoot.blogspot.com/2009/08/its-your-day-august-stamp-of-month-blog.html
Debra Van Patten ~ memoriesoftheheartbydeb.blogspot.com
Terrie Dodd ~ http://my-life-in-real-time.blogspot.com/2009/07/welcome-to-august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Jamia Bankhead ~ http://papermadnessinc.blogspot.com/2009/07/its-blog-hop-time.html
Anne Beck ~ http://anniemuses.blogspot.com/2009/08/sotm-blog-hop.html
Jennifer Patrick ~ http://roxybonds-scrappin.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Laurie Levnik ~ http://creationsbylaurie.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop_31.html
Lori Miller ~ http://clearlyfromtheheart.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-sotm-blog-hop-its-your-day.html
Brae Montgomery ~ thebrae-er.blogspot.com
Dawn Ross – ~ http://iamahappystamper.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Dawn Slipcevic ~ dawnscrapsalot.blogspot.com
Barbara Harris ~ http://paper-creations117.blogspot.com/2009/07/close-to-my-heart-stamp-of-month-blog.html
Carol Taggio ~ craftycarol55.blogspot.com
Jill Lucas ~ scrapwench.blogspot.com
Chris Green ~ http://createwithchris.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-2009-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Nancy Ball ~ http://ballisticdesign.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Dawn Heuft ~ http://stamptildawn.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Kelly Triggs ~ http://stampinallday.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-blog-hop.html
Beth Naumann ~ http://bethscreativeblock.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Antoinette Herrin ~ http://godblessyourart.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Jessica Booth ~ jessicabooth.blogspot.com
Jen Rubio ~ http://jenrubio.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Misty Jackson ~ http://misstscraps.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Adeline E. Brill ~ adeline-brill.blogspot.com
Lori Leng ~ http://pinkcloudscrappers.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Pam Klassen ~ eimmap.blogspot.com
Pamela OConnor ~ http://cherishyourmemories.blogspot.com/2009/08/stamp-of-month-blog-hop-its-your-day.html
Jennifer Royal ~ http://craftroyalty.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-ctmh-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Shannon Pelletier ~ http://mycolorfulworldinvt.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-sotm-blog-hop.html
Sherry Thompson ~ http://picturespatternsandpaper.blogspot.com/2009/08/its-your-day-august-sotm-blog-hop-with.html
Maricar Harris ~ http://maricarharris.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-sotm-blog-hop-its-your-day.html
Traci Godbee ~ createwithtraci.blogspot.com
Laura Dame ~ http://thecroppersconnection.blogspot.com/2009_08_01_archive.html#8855966204936587655
Miranda Kurz ~ http://www.scrampinwithmiranda.com/
Leisa Hubley ~ http://bigredscraps.blogspot.com/2009/07/ctmh-august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Julia Menssen ~ http://ralphandjulia.blogspot.com/2009/08/ctmh-august-stamp-of-month-blog-hop.html
Jan Moxey~ scrapandstamp4ever.blogspot.com
Jody Gustafson ~ http://cre8nmemories.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-blog-hop.html

Mother/Daughter Play Time!

The girls invited some friends over to play last week, but Kaylee's friend wasn't able to come over, so her and I got to play instead. She wanted to stamp so I pulled out some of my pre-cut card kits from past workshops and she picked her favorite card to recreate. I taught her how to "stamp kiss" - she had fun! Here are the cards we created...

Here is the original card from the pre-cut kit - inspired by Lisa Stenz from a few years ago.

Here is Kaylee's card - besidespre-cut paper, she did it all herself!

And I still had some of my stuff out from my Monthly Word Puzzle Make-Up Workshop, so I took my page title idea from THIS workshop and turned it into this card.

Just click on the pictures to view them larger - thanks for looking!