{a lot of scrappin' and a sprinkling of other rand
This blog contains the highlights of the scrapbooking and photography pursuits as well as the everyday life happenings of a working mom. Be inspired by a weekly scrapbooking meme/challenge and read reviews on scrapbooking products, magazines and idea books. |
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Articles from {a lot of scrappin' and a sprinkling of other rand |
It's official...
2007-12-21 19:08:00
Kaitlin is now our little actress!!The list was scheduled to be up today and I couldn't wait to go check it out! I went right after work to see if she was on the list...and so I could prepare myself for her if she wasn't on it. I don't know why I wanted her to be chosen so badly, but I sure did.There were about 70 children cast for this production of Beauty and the Beast and at first I didn't see her name...my heart sank...but then there it was!! She was cast as a 'Village Child'. No, surely not a huge part, but not a bad start for a child who's never auditioned for anything before and was one of the youngest to do so.I went to pick her up from school and took her back to the theatre and check out the list. I didn't tell her I already knew she had been cast and made her search for her name.She was beaming when she found it! How exciting! There is a meeting scheduled for next week to find out more details.She had another exciting occurrence the other evening.I had to do a day tr ...
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Little Actress??
2007-12-18 19:02:00
Kaitlin did decide to audition for Beauty & the Beast after all on Sunday night. Actually, she was quite excited about it once she talked to her teacher (of course, mom encouraging her wasn't good enough...proof of the power of a great teacher...thanks, Mrs. Moser) and got over her initial hesitation.So, we went. I filled out the form. We waited. Finally, the director was ready to go and called all the children 10 and under up to the stage. As usual, Kaitlin was the smallest child and, as usual, it didn't seem to phase her one bit.First, they did some stretching and wiggling in a circle (to get their dramatic juices flowing, I suppose). Then they all sat in a row and waited for their name to be called. For the 10 and under children, all they were required to do was sing a song...any song they wanted. Kaitlin had decided early on that she wanted to sing Father Abraham which was the song she had performed with her preschool class at their graduation back in May.She waited very pati ...
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REVIEW: Flip, Spin, & Play by Memory Makers Books
2007-12-17 19:25:00
Flip Spin & Play: Creating Interactive Scrapbook Pages by Memory Makers certainly isn't your average idea book. It includes many ideas for making each and every layout an interactive adventure.The book is divided into 4 chapters:1) Touchable Textures2) To Slide or Not to Slide3) The Skinny on Spinning & Flipping4) A Passion for Pop-upsThere are approximately 75 layouts and about 15 other projects including mini books and more. The book includes work from 16 contributing artists including:*Jodi Amidei*Vicki Boutin*Karen Burniston*Alecia Grimm*Greta Hammond*Linda Harrison*Becky Heisler*Nic Howard*Caroline Ikeji*Jen Lowe*Kelli Noto*Suzy Plantamura*Torrey Scott*Samantha Walker*Courtney Walsh*Amanda WilliamsMY REVIEW:I was certainly excited to see work by some of my favorite scrapbooking artists like Greta Hammond, Linda Harrison and Nic Howard. There was also some wonderfully inspiring layouts from artists I had not yet heard of.I'd have to say that the first chapter, Touchable T ...
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A Sick Girl...and a Layout!
2007-12-15 12:29:00
I had to leave work early yesterday and pick Kaitlin up from school...she was running a fever - about 101 degrees. Unfortunately, she still has it today...she's been pretty non-ambitious - totally not herself. I gave her a nice warm bath this morning to sooth some of her aches and pains and it helped a bit.When she was laying down in the bathtub, she said, "Mom, this nice warm water is helping my polka dots go away.""Those are called goosebumps, honey.""Oh...I'm gonna call them polka dots."This coming from a girl who is NEVER cold...keeping socks and bed covers on her is a challenge - even in winter! So, when she's chilly, you know she's not feeling well.Thought I'd also share a layout today...a recent favorite.Remember this photo from this year's Czech Days celebration? Well, I finally got it scrapped!LAYOUT TITLE: Czech PrincessSupplies:Patterned Paper – Cosmo Cricket, Creative ImaginationsRibbon – OffrayButtons – Oriental Trading CompanyPearl - UnknownInk – ColorboxFon ...
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A Little Link Love
2007-12-11 18:15:00
Just a few things I've found fun, helpful and/or inspiring lately:*Equation Bookshelf - A shelf with something to say!*Free Rice - Test your vocabulary skills...feed the hungry...it's a win-win!*Handipoints - Makes getting children to do their chores a little easier...and more rewarding for them.*goodreads - Keep track of what you've read and get great book recommendations.*be hospitable - Hospitality is not completely dead...here's proof! ...
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The Holiday Season is Definitely Here...
2007-12-10 20:50:00
and all the busyness that comes with it!!It snowed all afternoon and all evening on Saturday, but this weekend it was the fluffy stuff (we ended up with about 3 or 4 inches of it) and there was virtually no wind, so although it was really cold, it was quite beautiful.Remember my icy ax picture from the weekend before? Here's the same ax after this weekend's snow. Saturday night I took Kaitlin to the production of The Christmas Carol at the Dakota Theatre here in Yankton and she loved it! She sat and watched the whole thing beautifully! To make it even more exciting, her Junior Kindergarten teacher had a small role in it which I did not know before hand.I have been toying with having Kaitlin tryout for Beauty and the Beast production which is going to be put on by the Lewis & Clark Children's Theatre Company here next March. She is not convinced she wants to do it, but seeing her teacher up there got her a little more excited about the prospect. We'll see... After the play, we d ...
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Matthew Mayer, a Budding Artist, and Cold-Weather Comfort Food
2007-12-08 16:57:00
Matthew Mayer:The annual Christmas dinner was last night at the College and afterward Matthew Mayer held a concert in the auditorium. I heard him for the first time last year in November and LOVED him immediately. I was so moved that I actually wrote a poem about the experience and later created a layout around it.Nothing has changed...he's was still AMAZING. I bought two more of his CD's to add to the three that I bought last year and he autographed both for me...he's such a down-to-earth, personable guy! He currently lives in Omaha, NE and plays mainly within the Midwest, but has played in cities all over the country. If you ever have the chance to hear him in concert, you should not pass up the chance.You can learn more about him and purchase his CD's on his official website. You can also hear a couple of his songs on his MySpace page.He's just such an outstanding musician and you can see how much he LOVES music and performing. He gets very emotionally involved while playing an ...
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Introducing Mirecle33 Creativity Patch
2007-12-06 21:45:00
Wow...there really is a 'patch' for everything these days!! :-)Now I know exactly what I need when I hit my next creative slump...the Mirecle33 Creativity Patch. Thanks Chris Dunmire!I just need to find the Moretime24 Patch and I'm all set...if only it were that easy! ...
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Go Elf Yourself!!
2007-12-04 21:46:00
No, this is NOT profanity...but it is about the funniest thing you'll ever see.Have you heard of "Elf Yourself" on the OfficeMax website? I had run across this myself about a week ago and was going to create one with Kaitlin's face, but just hadn't gotten around to it yet.Then, my sister calls me tonight and says, "You have to go check your email RIGHT NOW! Mom just about pissed her pants!" (Sorry, Mom...but I just about did, too!)So, I did and this is what I found (warning - may take a bit to load, but totally worth it!):The Pechous Family Elf YourselfNow, it might be as funny to you being you may not actually KNOW these people, but from left to right the dancing elves are me, my mom, my dad (he doesn't normally stick his tongue out, but adds SO MUCH to this), and my younger brother (with one of his classic goofy faces)...notice my sister didn't want to embarrass herself and therefore left out her face. I don't care though...it's just hilarious...and, of course, I think I'm th ...
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An Icy Weekend...
2007-12-03 18:43:00
The icy snow on Saturday kept us in all weekend. Here's a couple pictures I took on Sunday. Can you see the ice on the trees...brrr. It was even worse when I had to chip away at an inch or so of ice that blanketing my car so that we could open the doors and get to school/work this morning. One more reason I'm not fond of the winter months.I tried again on the Christmas dress photos on Sunday...this time, we were successful, I think. I can't share them just yet though because it's supposed to be a surprise for the grandparents...sorry, Ruth, I know it's going to drive you crazy to wait! :-) Just remember, Christmas is only a few weeks away! ...
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It's snowing...
2007-12-01 14:02:00
In honor of our first snowfall today...here's some snow fun:TYPEflake - create a snowflake out of personalized textMake-a-Snowflake - create your own cut-out snowflakeUnfortunately for us, it's not a pretty snow. It's a heavy, wet, sleety snow. Nonetheless, Kaitlin was adamant about going out into the mess as soon as she got up and looked out the window this morning, so I bundled her up and out she went for a while.We also attempted our Christmas dress shoot today. Not sure if I'm quite pleased with the results...may have to try again later. Have I ever mentioned how I hate taking pictures indoors?? ...
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The Sprague Lab: Blog of Note and a Quote
2007-11-30 17:54:00
I love Jessica Sprague! Not only is she an incredibly talented hybrid scrapbooker, but also an incredibly generous teacher! She is always providing a host a great tutorials through her blog, The Sprague Lab, and sharing interesting bits and pieces of her life.She recently completed a redesign of her blog, which is GREAT by the way, and included this quote in her header:"Time stands still best in moments that look suspiciously like ordinary life."~Brian AndreasIt is definitely one of my new favorites!! ...
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REVIEW: Real.Life.Scrapbooking by Rebecca Cooper
2007-11-28 18:47:00
MY REVIEW:Real.Life.Scrapbooking. by Rebecca Cooper was inspiring to me on many levels.I am awed by Rebecca's ability to create simple layouts that are incredibly stunning using photos, color and text, yet avoid of all the extravagent embellishments that seem to be such the 'trend' in today's scrapbooking market.She, too, is a busy mother who doesn't have the time for all the fuss and just wants to record family history and create family art to enjoy for years to come. Her style allows her photos, her words, and her memories take center stage on her layoutsHer book is divided into 5 sections: 1) Why - The Real Reasons2) What - My Reality3) How - Real Simple4) Keeping it Real5) ResourcesThere were many ideas that stood out to me in this book involving color schemes, layout designs, themes/topics to scrapbook, but here's just a few that I really liked:* Creating a quick and easy mini book entitled "I want to remember this..." that I can continually add in tidbits on those little th ...
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