A few pics

Mercedes and Leif

From Christmas 2006

Jackie and Leif

From Christmas 2006

Jackie, Leif and Ethan

From Christmas 2006

Leif

From Christmas 2006

Mercedes and Daddy in the hot tub

From Christmas 2006

The 32 pound turkey!!!

From Christmas 2006

Baby Maria

From Christmas 2006

Christmas 2006

We went up to Edmonton for Christmas this year. Spent most of our time with Brad's parents, but did spend a day with Jackie & Leif. I'll try to upload a few of my favorite pics from our trip at some point. We went up on Dec 22, and came back on Boxing Day. Christmas was nice with Brad's parents and then the rest of the family came over in the afternoon for Christmas dinner. Mercedes got totally spoiled rotten again, but that's no surprise! lol She got lots of craft stuff so she's thrilled with that, a couple new games & movies, and a Barbie & My Little pony stuff. She also got three new dresses, some play makeup, new earrings and various other odds and ends. For me it was the year of the cookbook as I got 7 new recipe books this year! lol I guess everyone really does know what I like! lol I got a couple little scrappy things, along with some new pj's & pj pants. I also got a few new novels and a gardening book that I wanted. My mom gave us gift cards for Extra Foods, a new portable heater for the scrapbook room and a big box of toilet paper! lol I also managed to buy myself a few Christmas presents too! lol I ordered the Autumn Leaves calendar which I can't wait to look at. I bought a silent setter just a couple weeks before Christmas and then today I went and bought a really cool hardcover book about Classic Toys & their toymakers, and then I went and bought Friends Scene It game since Extra had them 1/2 off!

There was a slight damper on the holidays though...Brad got laid off as of Dec 22 for an undetermined amount of time. They told him that they hoped to be calling him back by mid-January, but we'll just have to wait and see. As it is it's kinda nice to have him home for a few days so I can have a little vacation too. The trip to Edmonton was not really all that relaxing and I came home more tired than I was before I left. It was so nice to get back into our own home again though. All and all it was a pretty good holiday with lots of time spent with our friends and families. :)

Is it Christmas yet?

I think I'm starting to get tired of Christmas preparations! lol It feels like I've been working on gifts for weeks now, and yet I still feel like I don't have much done. Today Mercedes and I went and got wrapping paper and actually wrapped a couple presents, so I feel like I've accomplished something and yet my to-do list doesn't seem any shorter!

The slide shows are pretty much done, just need to find some cases and make the covers. I think I'm finished with Mercedes' teacher's gift, but I'm too tired to take pics tonight. I still need to make about 10 more cards, finish my mom's gift and make something for my step-sister's family. I will be so glad to get back to just doing my own thing...I have some fun supplies that I'm looking forward to playing with after Christmas. And it will be so nice to get my desk cleaned up! Right now it looks like a bomb went off on it...in fact I've pretty much taken over an entire half of the living room! I just have too many different projects on the go now, so I have stuff everywhere and it's really starting to get on my nerves! lol

Taught piano tonight...I've really noticed a difference in the kids abilities in the last year...maybe I do know what I'm doing! lol Sonda was over at my mom's this evening working on the quilt she's making Cole, so I went over for a few minutes and we kinda got the giggles...it was fun to laugh until my stomach hurt, and I always crack up when my sister gets the giggles...we're going to end up just like my mom and my aunts! lol It was a good thing though cause I needed a good laugh today...I found out today that my kids still won't see me. I kinda expected that, yet when Terry told me it still broke my heart. At least my mom will get to see them, and I'll have to give Ferrin a quick photo lesson before so he can get me some good pics. According to Terry, when he asked the kids if they wanted to see me, Nyal immediately said no, but Jessi said "maybe next time"...I suppose that is better than an immediate no, but it still sucks. That's all I'll say on this subject...it needs to go back into that little lock box I keep it in so I don't have to hurt so bad.

On the plus side I had a good visit with Amy and with Launi today and my brother came down so I'll get to see him tomorrow...I really value my friends & family so much. Amy is going through a really rough time right now and I feel so bad for her cause I know what it's like...besides it's such a turn around...usually I'm the basketcase & she's the sane(r) one! And Amy if you read this you know I say that with love! lol Well, that's all for now, I think I'm gonna try to get some sleep. :)

They're almost done!!!

After hours & hours of work, the dvd slideshows are almost all done. I still have to burn a few more copies and label the disks....but then I can cross about 7 people off my Christmas list! Woohoo!! My brother really saved the day for me and I was so glad cause I had reached the point of wanting to throw my computer through my window...and that's never good! lol

Nothing too exciting today...got a few more Christmas cards made & signed...I'll have to pop them in the post tomorrow. After that I think I just have the cards that will be hand delivered left to do. I will be glad when all this Christmas stuff is done, so I'll have more time to just create and play. It's hard to believe that Christmas is only 2 weeks away! I have so much to do before we leave for Edmonton on the 22! Aghhhhh!

Tomorrow I teach piano, Thursday is my nieces choir concert, Friday is Brad's company Christmas party and I think Saturday we may go to Lethbridge. It's going to be a busy week and then next week I'll have to get all the laundry done, presents wrapped and us all packed to go away for a few days! I'm tired just thinking about all the things I need to be doing! lol Oh well, tomorrow's another day. :)

 

a few quick notes today...

I have recently realized that my spelling/grammar is rather atrocious in these blog entries! lol Maybe cause I'm always doing it late at night?

Not much going on today. I can finally see the finish line for these dvd slideshows...hopefully they will be finished tonight. Then I just have to burn a bunch of copies. I also decorated the cd case for it which will qualify as one of my assignments for my design team. I've even got over half my Christmas cards made and some have even been mailed! lol I'm pretty lucky cause we will be seeing most of our family throughout the holiday season, so most of our cards will be hand delivered.

Mercedes went to her first non-family member birthday party today. It was a little interesting. The little girl who's birthday it was (I'll call her J) doesn't have a phone, nor did she had 'Cedes phone number. Finally she got ahold of my cousin, who also has a dd the same age, and the message was then past on to us. It was a swimming party, and by the time we got there there was only about 20 minutes left. Didn't seem to bother Mercedes since she spent the whole time in the hot tub with Shaina! lol After swimming the kids we all going to J's house for cake & presents (Shaina (my cousin) & I were the only people that brought presents). I didn't go to J's house cause Mercedes just went with Shaina, but when Mercedes got home 2 hours later she had a sad story to tell. Apparently J's dad was supposed to show up with the food and the cake well over 2 hours ago...by the time Shaina left he still hadn't shown up. Mercedes was pretty hungry when she got home too cause all she'd eaten was a drink of pop, some chips and 1/8 of a weiner. I just think that is so sad for J. She is a little native girl and seems very sweet. Mercedes and her are always playing together at school, but I found out tonight that any future playdates should be held here since J told her classmates last week that her mommy was in jail again cause her daddy had to call the police. Considering that her dad didn't show up on time with the cake, etc. I imagine there are problems from that end too. There is just so much heartache in the native community here. And if you've never seen someone that is extremely intoxicated on something probably like hairspray or aftershave...it's just very, very sad.

Well I'm off to try my first burnt copy of the slideshow, so here's hoping that it'll be just as I imagined it. Maybe I'll even fill out some more Christmas cards while I watch it. I also need to write out the instructions for the altered cd case...then again, I just may go to bed! lol

I actually remembered how to upload some pics so these are just a couple I took around town last night....can you tell that I still have no idea on how to properly use my camera! lol

Maybe I'll try bloggin before...

my manic mind takes total control and tries to make me think doing 5 different things at the same time is a good idea! lol

Today was a pretty good day. I woke up with a sore throat and coughing, but started to feel better throughout the day. Mercedes has been a little sniffly too, so we're probably on the cusp of a cold.

This afternoon I spent working on Christmas cards and phoning people trying to find addresses and all that fun stuff! I also was at my sister's house quite a bit...5 or 6 times, just picking up kids and dropping them off! lol

Brad went down to the Legion for a couple hours this evening which was a nice break for me since Mercedes was at Sonda's. I took my camera out and was trying to get some neat pics of the Christmas lights around town, but I just have so much to learn about SLR cameras! Then I went over a tried to get some pics of my mom's Christmas ornaments. I'll try to post some here and I would totally love any and all constructive critism...and be specific cause I feel like I'm trying to learn a new language or something! lol

Then I came home and started working on Christmas cards (hopefully without Mercedes help), but she wanted to so she was writing her own name in the cards. I finally told she needed to go to bed...and now I can't work on more cards cause they'll still have to wait for her to print her cute little signature! lol

Just found out that I have less three days to finish my dvd slideshow and then alter a cd case. Could be a late night!

Couple more things today...Mercedes went through her toys to donate to the Christmas drive and also picked out a bunch a food. This is pretty exciting for us cause last year we were given a hamper and it was so greatly appreciated.

Other happy note...got my January CK and I have found so many different things for inspiration! I haven't even made it through half the magazine and I have a whole bunch of pages marked! lol

Ok, time to get serious....Tonight's goal is to finish slideshow. Wish me luck. :)

And sorry about the no pics tonight, but I seriously cannot seem to get my pics to upload properly and I can't afford to waste any time tonight trying to figure it out! lol

Here I am again...

Most of the weekend and the beginning of this week I have just been so tired. I was also fighting a killer head. Today didn't start out as bad as recently so I managed to get a few things done. Now it's just after midnight and I'm running around wide awake, trying to work on different projects at once! These are the moments when it's kinda fun to be bi-polar. I have two choices...take advantage of the intense energy and get as much done as possible, BUT then be useless for the next couple days or do I let this opportunity pass me be just cause my body seems to think it needs sleep, every single night?! lol

Pretty disjointed tonight. making Christmas cards. Writing in said Cards. Inserting pics into aforementioned cards...all with the help of a five year old. Working on an altered puzzle, altered clipboard and dvd slideshow. I have a nice stack of cards sitting by the sewing machine ready to be stitched...but my machine and I are really getting along right now, so I decided I would work on the slideshow instead. Meanwhile trying to get Mercedes to stay in bed, so give up on the slide show cause to many interruptions. Back to the sewing machine, except I started thinking how nice it would be to listen to Christmas carols, so off to the computer to try to find some Christmas music. Then I got hungry so off to find a snack, followed by a smoke, and then got distracted by something on the tv. Remind myself, that I haven't blogged all week, so came in here to do this....where the cards are not sewn yet, the Christmas music hasnt' been found and Mercedes is still not in bed!!!!! I can't seem to follow through on anything lately!!

It's finally finished!!

My magnetic advent calendar I've been working on is finally finished!! Woohoo! Got a few more Christmas cards made, and a family picture to put in our cards. Still have lots of stuff to make!!

All in all it's been a fairly decent week so far, here's hoping that it warms up for the weekend. :P 

Icing, icing, everywhere! 

Cookies fresh from the oven 

Another week gone by...

Well after my very productive, sleepless last weekend...I had a completely unproductive week. For the first time I did not go get Brad from work cause I was sound asleep...and it happened on his birthday of all days! Needless to say he wasn't thrilled, but he was fine about it...I think he realized how tired I was since I hadn't even heard the phone ring! So we had a pretty quiet weekend the last couple days.

Sunday I woke up to the sound of the mixer and I was trying to figure out what in the world Brad and Mercedes could be making...I knew we didn't have any mixes so I was both a little frightened and intrigued. Upon entering the kitchen and asking what was going on, Mercedes excitedly told me that they were making "icing cookies". I wondered if Brad realized that sugar cookies are an all day affair....one I had been trying to avoid! lol I finally resigned myself to the fact that cookies and icing and dough and flour everywhere was inevitable. Then I looked in the bowl. Brad had been mixing away and asked me how you could tell if the butter and sugar were creamed enough. I came to look and almost immediately noticed that the butter to sugar ratio did not seem right....because it wasn't! lol Brad had never measured butter before so he was amazed when I showed him the handy measurements right on the package! lol Needless to say we had to double the whole recipe. I also wanted for the butter to soften a bit so I could really mix it without my mixer sounding like it was going to give out completely. Lesson 2 for Brad...butter is much easier to work with if softened first. Now the whole waiting for the butter to soften thing would have given me a nice chance to wake up before I would be up to my elbows in cookie dough, except for one thing....Mercedes. Every 30 seconds she asked "is it ready yet?". We did eventually get the dough made and Mercedes cut out all the cookies, while Brad and I took turns rolling dough, putting pans in the oven etc. Finally just before dinner time the cookies were finished! Baked, cooled, iced and put away! Mercedes picked out enough cookies so she could take everyone in her class a cookie today...which was just fine cause we still have a bunch! lol At the end of it all Brad looked at me and said "Sorry hun, I really had no idea what a production making cookies could be!" So all and all, Mercedes had a great day doing one of her favorite things and Brad learned that sugar cookies cannot be made in less than an hour!! lol

Other than that, it is freezing cold here the last few days. Today was -24 with the windchill -30 and there is no break in site for the next few days. I hate it when it's this cold...I wish I didn't have to even leave the house, but my chauffer position is always demanding I go somewhere!

I did get my first design team package with some fun stuff I'm looking forward to working with. Still not done my advent calendar...only 10 more magnets to go. Plus I have a bunch of other stuff that needs to be done before Christmas so I may not get to play with my new stuff till after the holiday season.

A productive weekend...

Well I sure didn't get much sleep this weekend, but I was definately productive! Friday night I was working on some cards until 7:30 Saturday morning. I finally went to bed, but only slept until 1:30pm. Saturday night I stayed up all night working on a scrapbook layout using the amazing pictures of a sunrise that I took a few weeks ago. I worked on it all day Sunday too and finally finished it at 9:00pm! Sunday afternoon we went for dinner at my mom's with Pawlenchuk's and Sonny & the girls. Dinner was good and it was nice to spend a little time together. Finally just past midnight I managed to fall asleep...needless to say I pretty much slept all day today! lol

Along with my creative time I also did a lot of cooking this weekend. I've started to make a list of meal ideas. Ultimately I would like to be able to plan all our menus for two weeks at a time. And then just make my grocery list. Extra Foods has coupon days tomorrow so I'll go get our groceries then. Hopefully I get some fun mail this week...it's been awhile since I had anything fun in the mail. :)

I'm trying to make a magnet advent calendar for Mercedes to count down Christmas, but I'm sure I won't get it finished tonight. One of these days I'd like to start doing recipe pages too. And a minibook called "You make me Happy" about Mercedes and all the times that I get an overwhelming feeling of happiness just spending time with her. And I need to make covers for the dvd slideshow cases, and I still need to make a bunch of cards and finish Mercedes teachers gift.

Here's the layout I did this weekend...

A Very Good Day...

Today was a great day! Probably one of the best I've had in awhile. It started off with me getting up at 6:30 to drive Brad to work, but just as I walked out the door his friend Randy pulled up and said he was up so thought he'd come by and give Brad a ride so I wouldn't have too! Needless to say Randy is now my favorite of all Brad's friends here! lol So I quickly jumped back into bed and was immediately back asleep. I got Mercedes off to school then I went to the bank, got gas, a few groceries, smokes and movies and picked Brad up for lunch. We had lunch together then I took him back to work. I stopped by my sister's for a few minutes just to see how she was feeling. She was still quite pale and said she had a terrible headache, but was feeling better than she had been earlier this week.

After a quick visit with Sonda I went to the bookstore and picked up Eric's cd and something for Sonda's family for Christmas. After getting Mercedes from school we went out on a hunt for the perfect birthday gift for Brad. Of course Mercedes had to get something too, so we found a whole bunch of beads that she can use to make necklaces & bracelets. Being that Britten got beads for her birthday Mercedes has been wanting some ever since. We also hit the Bargain store where I got a rack thingie to use to help organize my supplies. After that it was the dollar store, drugstore and then the craft store to get a bead organizer. By the time we got done it was time to get Brad from work. We decided that he should celebrate his birthday tonight since Randy is in town and I was having such a good day, so we planned a menu of appetizers and I headed back to the grocery store.

As soon as I got home at 5:00pm I started cooking. We had spinach dip in a sourdough bread bowl, potato skins with real bacon bits, cheddar & monterey jack cheese & green onions, stuffed mushrooms and then bacon wrapped water chestnuts. Everything was a big hit and I got many compliments to the chef! Brad was just beaming that his friends were jealous that he had a wife who knew how to cook! It reminded me how much I really do enjoy entertaining. We are definately going to have to do it more often. I even have all the stuff to make more of everything tomorrow night, along with some crab melts and ham melts that I made up yesterday and Brad loves!!

Randy had brought his 2 year old daughter over to play with Mercedes and they sure were cute playing together. Everyone was gone by 11:00 so I now just have to get Mercedes to bed and I can have some much needed Tania time!! I hope to do something creative maybe inspired by the book Designing with Words that I just got from the library today after requesting it a year ago! lol And I put in my order for a copy of the Autumn Leaves Designing with 2007 calendar, something that I've really been wanting! And the best part of the day was that my mom is finally back from her vacation!! I've really missed her and I'm so glad they made it back safely. All

Just one of those days...

Today was just one of those days where EVERYTHING was getting on my nerves! I really hate days like this. The fact that I still have a killer headache is definately not helping and I can't even get in to see the doctor until Thursday afternoon. Tomorrow will be a busy day too and I'm already kinda dreading it. I have piano lessons tomorrow and then we have to rush to get to parent/teacher interviews at the school, but after that I'm coming home and watching DaVinci Code...I've been waiting to see this movie since I first heard about it, so at least there's something to look forward too. Maybe I'll even get lucky and wake up without a headache tomorrow...wouldn't that be nice! I just really need to have a few good days, cause my mood just seems to be getting worse and worse all the time. I know that I need to sit down at my desk and do something creative, but I'm also kinda waiting to see what I get to use for my new design team position. I'm hoping that the supplies will get here before the weekend, and hopefully new stuff will inspire me to do something fun. I do have an altered clipboard that I've started to make for Mercedes kindergarten teacher, but I gave up on it last night when my sewing machine decided that it doesn't like me right now either! lol And of course I don't know how to fix it and my mom is still gone on holidays...in a way it's almost funny... I'm thirty five years old and yet I'm still lost without my mom for two weeks! Oh well, what can ya do?

Quiet day...

Today was a nice quiet day. I got to sleep in until mid afternoon which I was very grateful for. I made a ham & scalloped potatoes for supper which was a huge hit with Mercedes! The last two nights she's hardly eaten any supper but tonight she had 3 helpings and then another 4 pieces of ham as a snack! It's always nice when the family actually eats what I've made! lol After supper we made some Rice Krispie squares and then Mercedes was dancing up a storm along with Dancing w/the Stars. She is just too cute sometimes!!

My sister is going through a bit of a hard time right now and I feel so bad for her. I wish I could take her pain away. She's been on a bit of an emotional rollercoaster the last couple days, and I just feel like I could handle it better than she is....since I seem to live my life on an emotional rollercoaster. One of my best friends is also going through a bit of a tough time...it's so weird for me when these two women who have both gotten me through some very tough times are now the ones going through hard times. I find it easier to be the one in pain then to be the one who has to just stand on the sidelines and try to help.

I'm still fighting a killer headache but that's nothing new. Guess I'll have to break down and go to the doctor sometime this week. I did manage to finish some Christmas ATC's for a swap, and write the rough draft of my blurb about me for the design team I just joined. And of course I took care of Brad too, so everyone should be happy this weekend! lol

Another week gone by...

Well it's been a few days since I last posted. Nothing much happened this week though. I've had a terrible headache all week that I just can't seem to shake, and major anxiety, so I'm not really sure what that's all about. I hope it doesn't mean a med change already. Mercedes has been fighting a cold all week also, but she's still been in a fairly good mood. It's been a little strange with my mom gone this week...I really do rely on those little breaks I get throughout the day when Mercedes runs next door to Grandma's! lol I'll have to remember to tell my mom how much she is appreciated when she gets back!

I did get one piece of good news this week though. I had applied for a design team position to Wendy Kennedy at http://www.stampandscrapcanada.com/index.html
last week. Since I hadn't heard back I assumed that I didn't get it, especially since she said there was alot of interest in the position. But yesterday when I checked my email I found a message congratulating me on being a new member of the design team!! I'm really looking forward to playing with some new supplies and Wendy seems great! So it was fun today to make a list of some of the stuff I'd be interested in using...it'll be even more fun when I get the actual package and can start to play. I already have a couple projects starting to come together in my head, so I'll be waiting ever so impatiently to get started!

Still here...

It's been a weird weekend. I've had some serious anxiety attacks and I hate that!! I've also been having trouble sleeping. I really hope this isn't a sign that the meds have quit working.

Didn't get much done scrapbook wise this weekend. I went to work on the altered clipboard I'm making, but when I sat down to do some stitching I saw that the needle on my sewing machine is broken. Of course this happens while my mom is gone on holidays for 2 weeks!! I have no idea how to tell what kind of needle to get. I did manage to get a couple birthday cards done last night though, so my weekend wasn't a complete waste. I'll probably need to get into the dr. this week cause I really haven't been feeling that great mentally and I think I still have bronchitis which isn't helping either. Mercedes has a cold right now also, but she seemed better today then she was yesterday.

Two nights in a row!!

Wow, two nights in a row...I haven't done that for ages!! Today was a busy day, as paydays always seem to be. The day started out less than joyful with Mercedes not wanting to go to school. Finally 5 minutes before school started she agreed to go rather than have to spend the day in her bedroom. After I dropped her off at school I went to the video store to get some movies for the weekend. The only way to get any new movies on a Friday is if you go right after they open. From there I went and picked up Brad for lunch and then drove him around from place to place. After taking him back to work I went down to the craft store to get some crackle medium and ribbon for an altered clipboard that I'm making. By then it was time to get Mercedes. Luckily she had a great day at school so she was glad that she went.

Spent the rest of the afternoon doing other running around. This evening I finally went and laid down because I had been feeling naseaous all day with a bad headache all week long. I think it might be a side effect from one of my meds. I've also been getting really shaky lately. Sometimes it's so bad I can't even roll a smoke. I have to remember to bring it up with the dr. next time I see him.

Nothing too exciting planned for the rest of the weekend. I'm almost done the dvd slideshow, so hopefully I can buy some blank dvds, and decorate the cases so they'll be done. I love gifts that I can give to multiple people! We've decided to get Brad's parents a dvd player for Christmas so that they can play their Mercedes slideshow. lol I just can't believe that I'm being so organized this year. I usually leave everything until the last minute, but so far so good. I should have at least half done by the end of November. Maybe I'll even get a chance to do a little baking this year.

Back on the horse...

Decided it was time to start keeping up with my blog again. It'll be a good way to monitor my moods and my creativity. The weather here is freezing this last week, with lots of snow. I really dislike winter!

Last night I finished a 16 x 20 canvas that I made for my inlaws for Christmas. I also started a dvd slideshow of Mercedes pictures that I plan to make lots of copies of and give to extended family. Last year I waited until the week before Christmas so I was up all night for a couple days before the 25th last year. With the way things are going this year, I could have everything done before Dec!! I have never in my life been ready for Christmas before December. :)

Been really tired this week and had no energy with a bad headache everyday. Don't see my dr again until the beginning of Dec, so hopefully things get better before then. Well, the head is aching so I can't think of anything else right now. I'll try to be much more diligent in writing from now on.

Let's try this again...

Ya, ya I know it's been three months since my last post. Life around here has been very busy though, so that's my excuse! :) Brad and I are together again which has made me very happy and life has been going great! Planted a garden this year...my first one ever, along with some flower pots and some annuals in the front beds. Everyday I go out and wander through the yard seeing how things are growing...it's so exciting to see the first little seedlings making their way up through the soil.

Haven't done all that much scrappin lately due to the fact that I've been spending so much time outside. I did make another altered canvas and have been working on some LO's for a friend of mine. I've also got the baby album started but not yet finished. Lately I've been trying to get a bunch of cards made because I'm hoping to start selling them. I have enough supplies and experience now that I can make a nice card from scratch in under 10 minutes...less if I use a design I've already come up with. I really enjoy making cards. I think it's cause they are small and quick to make so I get that immediately feeling of accomplishment. I also did some ATC's a couple weeks ago...love making them also for the same reasons.

Well it's pretty late and I still have a few things to get done so I'll have to post pictures later...hopefully I'll get them posted before another three months have passed! :)

another late night...

I don't know what is with me lately but I just can't seem to get to bed at a decent hour! Part of it is because I have been really busy lately creating and I seem to do that best in the wee hours of the morning and Mercedes has been staying up really late too, so I have to stay up even later just to get some me time.

Last night I started on an altered canvas project cause I felt the need to make something for myself before I start on another gift album. All I've done so far is paint the canvas and pick a picture of Mercedes that I want to use. Where it's going to go from there, I'm not sure yet. It's all still bouncing around in my head until I have my ah-ha moment...it'll come and till it does I just keep adding washes and glazes to my background color.

Taught piano lessons today and then I gave my neice a whole whack of scrapbook supplies that I'll never use...she was thrilled. Then I made a big batch of chili and Mercedes was thrilled! lol Now I think I will add another wash to the canvas, maybe pop in a movie or just go to bed....maybe if I actually got some sleep my project would start coming easier. then again, maybe not. :)

Just a quick note...

Today was my mom's birthday and I made her a bunch of cards and a paper bag album about her beautiful backyard. She was thrilled and it made all the late nights so worth it, knowing that she really appreciated all the work I had put into it. Made me feel good to give her something that I had truly put my heart into. We had a nice family dinner with my sister's family and it was just a pleasant evening all the way around. Now for a quick breather for a day or two before I dive head first into my next big project...a baby album. This will be the first time I've made an album without pictures so it may be interesting, but it's good to keep giving those creative muscles a work out now and then! ;) Other than that I need to restock my card supply since I've given 40 away this month and now have none left for myself! lol

If you want to check out the paper bag album you can find it in my picture trail album at http://www.picturetrail.com/mercedesmommy2002 Thanks for looking and have a great night! :)

So it's been awhile...

Decided that I should get back into the habit of blogging again, if for no other reason that it will help with journaling for scrapbook layouts!

I've actually been pretty busy lately...I've made 40 cards this month and am currently trying to get a little paper bag album made for my mom for her birthday on Wednesday. I really don't know why I always seem to think of these things at the last minute! lol Oh well it is starting to come together nicely and as soon as I have a few uninterupted hours, I'm sure I can get it finished. I think she will really like it as I'm also giving her a bunch of cards too. She bought me a pack of 250 sheets of nice white cardstock and told me flat out that she wanted cards for her birthday, so she's getting some! Nothing like being subtle! lol

I need to get a set of coasters made for my girlfriend next week also and then I'll be starting on a baby album. My cousin had their first baby a couple weeks ago and I decided to make them an album...they'll just have to add the pictures. I'll be seeing them on Easter so I have a couple weeks at least to work on it! I actually would have started earlier except I had to order most of the stuff online and she ended up having to backorder some of it, so I told her to just hold the order until she could send it all at once. As far as I know it was mailed on Friday so I'm really hoping that it'll get here by mid-week. I've never made an album without pictures before so it should be interesting, but I enjoy stretching my creative muscles! I've also been working on an Art Journal with some girls from my scrappin message board and that's been alot of fun. Unforetunately I am now 2 weeks behind, but I'll work on it as I find the time.

So that's most of what's been going on around here lately and what's scheduled for the immediate future! I'll try to be much more diligent in keeping up my blog. :)