A couple of cards

It's early Saturday morning and I'm on a mission to get several of the crafty projects I finished recently, posted. I don't know why downloading and cropping the photos has seemed like a monumental task the past week, then again everything seemed a little more difficult this week.

This first card I like to call 'Ode to Inky Button'. I worked a class that the fabulous Angela taught last week on two of my favorite things, Bellas and Copics. She was kind enough to stamp a couple of images of girls I don't have so I could play with them at home. I set out to make an Angela-esque card with Cupcakeabella. While mine is not nearly as cute as hers, I think I worked in most of the Inky Button trademarks. Let's see...Bella? Check!, Ticket edges? Check! Bling? Check! Copic layering? Check! Embossing Folder? Check! Black Ribbon? Check although for true IB style it should be wider. Glassy Accents? Check!




Supplies:
Stamp: Cupcakeabella
Cardstock: Hammermill(White) Prism (Green) Bazzil (Pink)
Bling: Kaiser Craft
Other: Cuttlebug Embossing folders, QK scallop circle

This second card has quickly become one of my all time favorites. I designed it for the January Frenzy at the store, but of course forgot to post it here...or did I post, hmm I guess I should have checked before I started this post. C'est la vie.



Supplies:
Cardstock: Bazzil
Patterned Paper: 'tres old' Tres Jolie, MME
Ribbon: AC
Other: QK Thank You Goosebumpz, Tim Holtz ruler --- I love, love, love this ruler... so I went to find a picture of this ruler in case you wanted to run out and get one and you needed a picture and found something even better...because I know how much we all love Tim, how about a demo from Tim himself.



Happy Saturday!

Happiness is...

Jars full of ribbon and pretty vintage shelf to put them on.

I found this cute shelf at Patina(sadly no web presence to link you too) and thought it would be the perfect reward for cleaning out the scraproom and surviving the past couple of busy work weeks. The shiny red paint makes me smile each time I look at it.

Tanner's Resolutions

I know I shared a few of my resolutions for the new year, now I thought it might be fun to share some of Tanner's resolutions (or at least the ones I really hopes he makes from this fun list we found)

1. I will not eat other animals poop. (is there a 12 step program for this, I think Tanner needs one)
2. Since number 1 will be a hard one to break, I will at least not lick my human's face after eating animal poop
3. I will not roll in other animals poop
4. I'll remember that the garbage collector and/or UPS truck is NOT stealing our stuff.
5. I will not roll my toys behind the couch.
6. I must shake the snow and rain out of my fur BEFORE entering the house.
7. I will stop trying to find the few remaining pieces of clean carpet in the house when I am about to throw up.
8. I will not eat any more socks and then redeposit them in the backyard after processing.
9. I will not wake Mommy up by sticking my cold, wet nose up her bottom end.
10. I will not chew crayons or pens, especially not the red ones, or my people will think I am hemorrhaging.
11. When in the car, I will not insist on having the window rolled down when it's raining outside.
12. We do not have a doorbell. I will not bark each time I hear one on TV.
13. I will not eat my Mom's underwear.
14. The sofa is not a face towel. Neither is Mom’s lap.
15. I will not put my paws on the counter or steal any more Christmas roasts.
16. I will not bite the officer's hand when he reaches in for Mom's driver's license and car registration

Monday Quote

When the world changes, the rules change. If you insist on playing today’s games by yesterday’s rules, you’re stuck.

Seth Godin

It's Garage Sale Time!

Today is the big day...I've packed all the crap and hope it moves on to deserving homes. The trick will be not taking home as much from the other sellers as I brought.

If you're a papercrafter in the Denver area, trust me you don't want to miss this sale. I had a sneak peek last night and there are some super bargains! 2.00 stampin up stamp sets---can't beat it. Stop by the store and get ready to shop.

Tough Love

'Real friends are ones that know the worst about you and still like you'

It's time to face the music, my scraproom and Houston's had both reached a point a few weeks ago where neither one of us could really scrap in the area. So we made a plan to help each other plow through the excess.

I've long been a proponent of the the Love and Logic model in working with kids, in training we say it works on kids, dogs, dolphins even husbands, but could it work on friends with out of control scraprooms?

An ounce of empathy...the Scenic Route and Basic Grey is non negotiable and neither one of us would have to part with any products from these companies

Take control with small choices...you can keep two stamps for everyone you put in the sale bin

One sentence intervention: No you don't need two packs of the same paper

and it worked. Both rooms are on their way back to being the clean, organized and inspiring space we want them to be.

I'm thankful for such a good friend.

I'm thankful for a organized space that allowed me to make a this layout in under 45 minutes.

Today is a good day...

To say I was distracted at work today would be an understatement at best...

I streamed the key part of the inauguration and was moved to tears, as I watched it again at home this evening I teared up again.

I believe in this man.
I believe in Hope.
I believe in a better future for the children in my family and those I've served for so long.

And this is why...from Sunday's Parade Magazine

Dear Malia and Sasha,
I know that you've both had a lot of fun these last two years on the campaign trail, going to picnics and parades and state fairs, eating all sorts of junk food your mother and I probably shouldn't have let you have. But I also know that it hasn't always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn't make up for all the time we've been apart. I know how much I've missed these past two years, and today I want to tell you a little more about why I decided to take our family on this journey.

When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me—about how I'd make my way in the world, become
successful, and get the things I want. But then the two of you came into my world with all your curiosity and mischief and those smiles that never fail to fill my heart and light up my day. And suddenly, all my big plans for myself didn't seem so important anymore. I soon found that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours. And I realized that my own life wouldn't count for much unless I was able to ensure that you had every opportunity for happiness and fulfillment in yours. In the end, girls, that's why I ran for President: because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation.

I want all our children to go to schools worthy of their potential—schools that challenge them, inspire them, and instill in them a sense of wonder about the world around them. I want them to have the chance to go to college—even if their parents aren't rich. And I want them to get good jobs: jobs that pay well and give them benefits like health care, jobs that let them spend time with their own kids and retire with dignity.
I want us to push the boundaries of discovery so that you'll live to see new technologies and inventions that improve our lives and make our planet cleaner and safer. And I want us to push our own human boundaries to reach beyond the divides of race and region, gender and religion that keep us from seeing the best in each other.

Sometimes we have to send our young men and women into war and other dangerous situations to protect our
country—but when we do, I want to make sure that it is only for a very good reason, that we try our best to settle our differences with others peacefully, and that we do everything possible to keep our servicemen and women safe. And I want every child to understand that the blessings these brave Americans fight for are not free—that with the great privilege of being a citizen of this nation comes great responsibility.

That was the lesson your grandmother tried to teach me when I was your age, reading me the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence and telling me about the men and women who marched for equality because they believed those words put to paper two centuries ago should mean something. She helped me understand that America is great not because it is perfect but because it can always be made better—and that the
unfinished work of perfecting our union falls to each of us. It's a charge we pass on to our children, coming closer with each new generation to what we know America should be. I hope both of you will take up that work, righting the wrongs that you see and working to give others the chances you've had. Not just because you have an obligation to give something back to this country that has given our family so much—although you do have that obligation. But because you have an obligation to yourself. Because it is only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you will realize your true potential.

These are the things I want for you—to grow up in a world with no limits on your dreams and no achievements beyond your reach, and to grow into compassionate, committed women who will help build that world. And I want every child to have the same chances to learn and dream and grow and thrive that you girls have. That's why I've taken our family on this great adventure.

I am so proud of both of you. I love you more than you can ever know. And I am grateful every day for your
patience, poise, grace, and humor as we prepare to start our new life together in the White House.

Love, Dad

I believe it won't be easy
I believe.

Monday Quote

"We must combine the toughness of the serpent with the softness of the dove, a tough mind with a tender heart" Martin Luther King, JR

Those crazy improv kids are at it again...

ooh did you think I abandoned the concept of video thursdays? Nope, just waiting for something really good. I can always count on my Improv friends to bring a smile.

Crash, Bang, Boom

The irony of it all...We are gearing up planning for the next school year and taking a closer look at technology...even though Online is in our name, we are far from maximizing the power of technology. I've spent the past week or so researching and working with colleagues to strategies what we need to help engage students, to make learning authentic, and all the while help teachers do there jobs better, faster, and more efficient. We're exploring the full set of Google Applications and as I welcome each tool into my life I can't help but think Google just may be the 'big brother' cynics/conspiracy theorists are concerned with. Forget the government, I'm sure Google knows more about me and I would like to think 'cares' more about me than the government will ever do and I set it all up purposely with information freely given. And just like a big brother should Google has rewarded me with things that make my life easier. My favorite tool lately has become the Google Reader. I like to think of it as my own personal newspaper. No longer do I have to go to my blog and click on the link to go to yours, and then click on your link to so and so...nope Google does all the work. Just one click and voila you're all right there, along with work blogs and a couple of broncos ones just for fun. I can easily tag and sort and Google even makes recommendations (this is where conspiracy theorists probably get nervous) good recommendations...example after I had all of you loaded Google figured out that I would probably like to read Jennifer Pebbles and Stephanie Howell...of course I would, I just wouldn't want to go to Pea land everyday and search for links. (yes I know I could bookmark, but I've always been bad about that). Have I got you hooked yet, if so check out this great post from the big brothers. No longer will I be intimated by the little orange 'feed' buttons, I know now they really are the muscles that move the Internet and as you know big brothers are pretty much worthless if they don't flex their muscles once and a while. What's really fascinating to me as an educator is how these tools will shape our work, it's an exciting time to be a student...no longer will you have to sit in some dark basement of a library searching through microfilms, the information is all right there in your hand completed with citations to copy and paste, our task now is no longer to give the information, but to help aggregate it to answer the why. I can see some of my colleagues challenged by this, they being ones who got into educating because of the powertrip, to be the ones with all the answers, no longer. We will all be challenged, we will all become better learners and in doing so will hopefully be better humans.

So where's the irony? All of these thoughts were flowing through my head on the drive home and I came home to face yet another set of phonebooks on my doorstep (please make them stop) These books are obsolete already, surely numbers have been changed, businesses closed, etc even before they went to print. So why do we still have them? And at that moment, I felt the full force of life2.0 hit me.

Monday Quote

I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble.
- Helen Keller

Truthfully, I really long to bitch about being at work in the midst of a mild blizzard, but I came across this quote in a little bit of research this morning and thought it would be a much better way to start the week and it put me in a slightly better mindset to start the week. Hope you are safe and warm.

Happy Monday!

A little bella love

So far so good on my resolution to do something creative everyday. I started this card last night and then poor Tanner threw up his dinner in the middle of my craft room. Cleaning up doggy vomit is just about the funnest thing next to cleaning up what comes out the other end. (oops probably an overshare there). The silver lining was it gave me time to reflect on this card and see it in the light of day when I realized I had it on some pink paper that really didn't match this ribbon. I've been trying to work this ribbon into a project since last week when I uncovered it when organizing my ribbon. Super excited that QK finally came out with a label die, I had to use it right away.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink
Paper: Heidi Grace (On dress)
Colors: Copics
Stamps: Stamping Bella(winobella), CHF(Mona Lisa Sentiments: Cheers)
Ribbon: All My Memories (yep, AMM been in the stash a looooong time)
Other: QK label, Fiskars scallop punch, Glassy Accents

Need more bella inspiration, check out the great work on the bella-riffic Friday blog.

Anyway...

I love...

that I have smart friends who challenge me on so many levels. Who would have thought we would take a journey back to HS English for a journaler's challenge? Thanks to Ducky we all had a review of point of view and tenses. My version, second person future tense. I had to really think about it, I almost chickened out and took an easier route (first person, past tense anyone?) and then I printed these great pics of Sienna and my mom and mom's iPhone. I can only imagine how much technology Sienna will see and as she figured out how to pull up her own photo at 1 yr, I'm going to bet she'll have some solid skills in technology.

and speaking of friends, can I just say how happy I am my friends Jon, Stephen, Serena, Dan and all my other TV friends are back from their winter break and my Tivo is going back to work.

Weekend Wind Down

oh gosh, it's hard to believe two weeks of vacation have flown by and I'm dreading heading back to work tomorrow. I feel like I could use one more week to really be ready and then again maybe not.

I had a great time with the creative ladies last night and I actually completed two layouts, that brings the annual tally for 2009 to 4, probably the only time this year that I'll have a completed a layout for each day. My goal for the year is 3 pages each week and more of course would be great.

Here's the first of the layouts from yesterday, I fell in love with these tights when I saw them in a specialty shop and even though the size should have been right, they were a bit to tight for baby girl and took a little bit of work by Mom to get her into them, after all that work how could I not take at least one picture of her in them. Equally as cute is this yummy paper from October Afternoon. I'm so glad I snagged an 8x8 pad before they flew out the door.the other is for an upcoming journaling challenge so you'll just have to wait for that one...

Happy New Year!

I hope your year is off to a great start...have you made any resolutions? I made just a few hopefully doable. One of them was to be creative in someway everyday...so far so good.

I finished a layout I started at Viv's on Tuesday, it will most likely be the Sunday sketch on the store blog on Sunday. I thought it was about time I posted something here first. I don't know what possessed me to so the diagonal strips...what a pain, never again...well, maybe...I do like the way they turned out. I just need to come up with a shortcut to get the angles correct, I know I have a protractor around here somewhere.


Then I was once again inspired by Becky and decided to take her challenge to create a page about things that make me happy using the scraps laying around. I had this vision of a page made of scalloped circles...sadly, the vision just didn't come together, truly I tried stapling and stitching and it just didn't work. Plan B...a scalloped circle border...much better although scanning and merging didn't do it justice. I'm not sure about the finished page...I think it's a bit ironic that it's about my scrapbook style, but not really my style. What I do appreciate it that it stretched me creatively to finish and that's what this year is all about (at least I hope it will be)
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