It's a HOT HOT HOT Thursday....

Well it's about 12:30pm here in Naples, FL and it's about 87 degrees. They say it's only going to be about 90 today but it already feels like I'm living on the sun! Unfortunately there is zero chance of rain today so it's going to be a scorcher all day.

I took the dogs out a minute ago and after a quick potty Roxy ran to her favorite spot under the car to keep cool while Crystal ran around in the lot next door. Even under the car she was more than happy to pose for me!


She is so funny. Crystal used to let me take pictures of her but I really can't get her to let me anymore unless I "sneak up" on her. If I pull out the camera and she's paying attention to me she either gives me this horrible "Mom, I hate this" look (yes dogs can give you those) or she runs away upstairs to sleep on the bed and chew one of the million bones she has stashed. But not Roxy ... she loves it, runs around me while I take the pics, and then charges the camera to give it a big sloppy kiss!


I have made the decision that today is going to be a fun productive day! I'm going to pamper myself a bit and then get to work on a PageFrames album that has just needs to get done already. (I think I've been secretly afraid to touch it for fear of it not turning out how I imagine it.)

Also .....

The Office is back tonight!






I can't wait to watch tonight. This show is so hilarious. I love Steve Carell and loved him on The Daily Show. The cast is just amazing and the writing genius. I am so stoked that the new season is beginning again (don't worry Joe I'll tape it so we can watch it again together when you come home and we'll catch up!) I found these computer wallpapers online and thought they were so perfect.

I have a ton more that I want to share today but I want to do it a bit later after I've gotten full permission to post some amazing work and inspiration from one of my favorite artists!

Until then... Happy Thursday!

{hugs}

It's been a long day....

This LO pretty much sums it up! I know I don't have any kids, and am so very fortunate to not have to work out-of-home but man is it hard to take care of things without my best friend around! (That's you Joey... hehe.)

It all started this morning. I'm not a coffee drinker but what I look forward to most in the morning is a nice big glass of chocolate milk. So yummy! So this morning I got myself and the dogs up and out. The dogs did their thing - I came in, fed them, took my shower, and then got my glass of milk ready. Well then Roxy wanted to go back out again (she is still a baby after all) and so I had to put my glass of milk aside for the moment. When we came back in she decided that she wanted to be rowdy and started "attacking" my feet. I scolded her to stop and she then proceeded to somehow knock over my TV Table which caused the entire glass of choc. milk to spill all over the rug. AHHH! I was so mad.

I know this may not seem like a big deal. But really I was already in a sad mood due to my hubby being a million miles away and this just kinda took the cake. Well after getting it cleaned up (and dealing with Roxy peeing about a foot away from where I was cleaning - damn she goes a lot!) I decided just to deal. If I get upset about every single thing that happens in the next two weeks I'm going to be a basket case by time Joe comes home.

With all of the craziness this little Taylor clan has been getting into and is planning on getting into in the next few months I had made a promise to myself to be up and ready for whatever life throws at me and to have fun. This morning reminded me that this applies to EVERYTHING!

So back to the layout.... The lo posted above I did for the Last Scrapper Standing Round One on the 'Effers Dares site. I hope I get to move on but regardless it was fun to actually complete a challenge on time and have some fun. Whether or not I get to Round Two I can't wait to see the next challenge and play some more!

Now off to something ELSE that's transparent!

{hugs!}

P.S. If this is my Joey... I love you babe, and me and the poopers miss you SO MUCH! I hope that you were able to get some sleep tonight after your long day of traveling. I can't wait to see some pictures and to talk to you tomorrow on IChat. Tell everyone I said hi (or at least tell the non-grumpy ones I said hi!) xoxoxo

House of One...

Well, as of this afternoon my hubby is on his way across the pond to meet NCL's new "It" girl the Norwegian Gem in Emshaven, Holland. He has a long journey over there - I dropped him off for a 1 O'Clock flight and he won't get settled or really anywhere near the ship until tomorrow afternoon. I'm pretty bummed that I don't get to go with him this time. He's working as a cameraman getting footage for their marketing company in Texas, if it was a JWT Media shoot I'd be there.

Joe and I haven't been apart for this long since quitting full-time ship life. It's hard having to give up my best friend for two weeks and it will be even harder to get used to sleeping alone again for awhile. But at least I have my puppies and he promised to give me a call as soon as he can (thank god for Jason and his international phone!) I'll probably be getting some pictures too right away so t least everyone will be able to see some behind the scenes cruisin' goodness. (BTW I told him he was in BIG trouble if he did anything seriously fun without me! LOL!)

So what are my plans for the next few weeks. Work Work Work! Design Design Design! Pack Pack Pack! Yup I have a crazy amount of projects that I've been wanting to work on and finish up. For one I need to get going tonight on the challenge for Last Scrapper Standing Vol. 2, although I haven't heard back from the girls to know that I got registered in time! It's a cool challenge anyway and I'm ready for a late night of scrapping watching LA Ink!

I have a bit of cool news! First off the Dudettes over at Dude Designs loved the work our AMM DT did with their products and put my designs up in their idea gallery: check them out! They have Dedra Long's work up (our newest AMM Designer) and Emily's should be up soon too. They also want to send us some more goodies to play with so I can't wait to get them!

I have also had a project of mine picked up to be published for the first time ever! YAY! It was a big goal of mine to get published this year and I'm so stoked! (One of my To Do B4 25!) Memory Makers picked up my South America Photo Journal for their March/April 2008 issue! I was really hoping that my SA Journal would get picked up by someone. Not only is it filled with my favorite photos from my trip around South America but it was made with green (recycled) supplies. And going (more) green is totally one of my other big goals this year!

I think that's all of my news... I sent off my project to C&T Publishing today. I'm not sure when I'm "allowed" to post a few pics of it or even if I'm supposed to let anyone know what the new product is but lets just say it was a very BIG project for me! I'm hoping they will like what I did with it and that they will invite me to design more with their awesome Ready-To-Go books!

So that's it. I know this was a long boring blog post today with no fun pictures. Maybe me and the girls will go out a bit tomorrow and have some photog fun.

Oh one other thing - I'm about to start designing some really cool kits for AMM. I really hope everyone likes them when they are released. Keep a lookout!

okay I shut up now.

{hugs!}

Where did Saturday go?

Well it's about 6:00pm on Saturday evening and I can't believe how quickly the day has flown by. I wish I could say that time flew because I was having fun, but really it flew because we ran around in traffic all afternoon!

Today I had to go pick up some things from JoAnns and some doggy treats at PetCo. Then we went over to see Joe's Mom because we won't be able to see her before Joe leaves on Tuesday.

Yes, Joe will be traveling overseas on Tuesday and leaving me all by my lonesome for about 2 weeks. He's doing some work for NCL on their new ship The Gem. I'm so jealous that I can't go this time. But I have a lot of work, packing, and puppies to take care of. Also it will give me a chance to get a few girl's nights out!

So with the hours left of my Saturday I have to get kicking on this BIG (and I mean LARGE) project for C&T Publishing. I can't wait to see how it will turn out. Oh, check out those red earrings - $1.50 at Target. They weren't even in the clearance section (but I guess they should have been)! That was a hot surprise at check-out!

{hugs!}

*Dude Designs* Spotlight

I was so stoked to receive Dude Designs as my manufacturer sponsor this month. I have been waiting for this product since I saw them at CHA Summer in July. They have the coolest little kit projects and their patterned paper designs have really great funky color palettes and have a clean MOD feel as well. I'm addicted!

There are a ton of projects and there is no way I can post all the images here so check out my product spotlight and gallery at *AMM*, I should have them up on 2peas soon too.

FYI: I was sent the following project kits and the Tomboy@Heart line form Dude Designs. I was also sent their "thought-fulls" (journaling cards) and "colorfulls" (stickers).

{my sketch} ideas: Idea Kit

Is this not the coolest {idea} !! I love this little book and I can't wait until I'm out shopping or commuting and I need to sketch something that has popped into my head. I can pull out my idea book and go to town AND have it organized, no more random bits of paper in my purse!



2008 Calendar Journal: Dates Kit

Another amazing idea and kit form Dude Designs. This is going to be a great journal for next year and it's all pre-dated and comes with the covers, book rings, and dated months. One of the things I love about Dude Designs are how nice and easy their project kits are, you can embelish as much or as little as you want and everything you need (cover, pages, rings) comes right in the pack!




Everything Roxy: Ten Kit

There are WAY too many photos of this project to post so I'm only giving a taste here. Check out the whole book though at one of my galleries because this kit is so cool.




And finally a couple of layouts and a Thank U card. A HUGE thank you to Dude Designs and Alison & Michelle at A Million Memories for sending these awesome products. I had so much fun. (And I may have a few more layouts tomorrow too! I can't get enough of this pp!)





TFL!

{HUGS!}

Check out my design links...

So I thought it would be easier to find the blog posts of my Manufacturer Spotlights and Kit Designs if I made my own little archive, so that's what I did. I don't always blog all of my designs so for full galleries the links to my 2peas and AMM galleries are still there. Basically I wanted it to be easier for those manufacturers who check up on the work I do with their sponsor packages!

Now to post my latest....

It was a scrappy weekend...

And all in all I'm wiped out! Between the puppy, organizing the Anniversary Crop at A Million Memories, and all the projects I've been finishing I'm ready for a nap and a nice vacation. But, not such luck yet!

Here are two of the layouts I did this weekend!



This one is for Alison & Michelle's Anniversary Album that I'm putting together. Check out the AMM Message Board if you would like to contribute. I need all of the layouts that are going to be mailed to me here by the 29th of September so I can send it off to them!



This is the first layout I've done of our new little girl Roxy. It was so fun to play with all of my Love, Elsie goodies. I've been so busy scrapping assignments that I hadn't used hardly any of the fun stuff I've been hoarding! I'm going to be doing a lot of scrapping in the next week though to send in. I'm doing a pub-push and trying to lighten my stash for the move!

Roxy is doing so great. It's been such a fun weekend getting to know her little personality and watching Crystal and her build a doggy sisterhood. They are doing so well - and Roxy finally got up the courage to climb up the stairs (with some encouragement from me, Joe and Crystal!) She is way to small to get down them though and just kind of cries at the top if she wants down. We don't let her upstairs without us tough so she's safe for now.

Well, I'm off to finish cleaning up my studio and get to work finishing up my projects from Dude Designs. The products they sent are so fun! Oh I also was asked to design a project for C&T Publishing, very exciting! They are sending it this week and I have a pretty short turn around time so I'm excited to see how it turns out! I really have to thank Katie Watson for sending them my information - she rocks and is always looking out for her DT gals!

I hope everyone had a great weekend and can still get some Sunday R&R in there!

{Hugs!}

Scrap*Star Chat TONIGHT!

Good Friday Morning!

I wanted to put a quick reminder up about tonight's Scrap*Star Chat at A Million Memories with the entire Scrapbook LifeStyle Design Team! We are so lucky to have all of these fabulous ladies with us tonight to talk about anything YOU want to chat about!

Take a peak at their bios here on the AMM Blog if you want to learn more about them all before the chat. We'll see you tonight at 6PM PST on the Online Chat Forum at A Million Memories!

Also, be sure to stop by on Saturday for our AMM 1 Year Anniversary Online Crop. I have so many awesome challenges planned and Alison & Michelle are giving out some amazing prize packs.

A New Little *Surprise*

Meet Roxy!

This is our new little baby that we found today and let me tell you she is a BIG surprise! We weren't really looking for dogs (especially with a move to the city coming up) but I happened to stop into our local stamp shop The Wicked Stamper and Kim (the owner) was giving away puppies that were born in her neighborhood. It's a really long story how she came to take care of this little family so I'll save it for a layout about this little sweetie.

Like I said we really weren't looking for another dog but knew we wanted one eventually. Crystal has been wanting a friend for months (her favorite road trip is over to our friend's to play with their dogs while we all play poker!) We had Crystal with us to go to Petsmart for a manicure so when she gave us the approval of the little chunky pup and Joe fell for her what was I to do!?!

This little girl is a German Shepherd / Husky Mix and has the cutest smokey blue eyes I've ever seen. We named her Roxy and now she's a Taylor Pup! I've been doing my best getting the house puppy proofed and chaperoning Crystal and Roxy. Crystal doesn't quite understand that she's more fragile than her other friends but once Roxy gets used to the place I think she'll give Crystal a run for her money! She's only 5 weeks but is weened and has been eating well already. (She's a porker right now!) She has been sleeping off and on since we got her home so thankfully right now she's pretty easy to handle.

Now i"m off to finish up some more designing before the two dogs wake up again. I'll have info about her soon and some better pics too. I'm a little overwhelmed right now! It's shaping up to be a very busy week - but so full of love!

{hugs!}

Hello Tuesday.

It's been a bit since I've blogged... I took a couple days off this weekend to just relax and hang out with my hubby and pup. We didn't end up going over to Miami because the weather didn't look too good ... and we decided that if we were going to be stuck in the house we might as well be stuck in our house instead of the studios. But all in all it was a fabulous weekend. Joey and I made a great dinner for our anniversary of some gorgeous NY Strips from Fresh Market and my favorite onion roasted potatoes. Yum!
I got a chance to get out of the house a bit today and do some scrap browsing/shopping. I picked up these fun Martha stickers (and they were pretty cheap too ... $1.99). OMG the Christmas stuff is all over now and it's scaring the crap out of me! I'm so not ready for it to be Christmastime again! I want to make my cards this year and now that Joe and I are married our card list seems miles long. Really, when did I say I wanted to be a grown up! LOL.

Well, right now i'm working on some really awesome products I was sent from Dude Designs. They are one of my favorite companies that I was so fortunate to see at CHA Summer. They have these really awesome idea cards that have a grid and note space. I can't wait to show everyone the little book I made to carry around with me ... that way I can sketch whenever the !! pops in my head. I should have all of my projects done very soon for everyone to see at A Million Memories.

Also, don't forget that this weekend is our One Year Anniversary Crop at A Million Memories. You won't want to miss out on the challenges and the fun stuff we have planned. Alison & Michelle are always giving away hot prizes and the prize packs they have put together for me to give away this weekend are AMAZING! (Maybe I'll give a sneak peak tomorrow on the MB)... Also we are kicking things off with a Scrap*Star Chat on Friday at 6pm (PST) with the entire Ssrapbook LifeStyle Design Team. The ladies from Scrapbook LifeStyle are so fun, it's going to be a crazy night!

Can't wait to chat with everyone Friday!
{Hugs}

One Year.

Well today is our One Year Anniversary. I can't believe how quickly these 365 days have gone by. Last year I was in my hometown of Hobart, IN getting ready to embark on the greatest journey of my life, marriage to my best friend.

To celebrate our Anniversary we are going to Miami tomorrow for some much needed R&R. I'm excited to get over to the East Coast to do some sunning and check out the Coco Grove happenings.

Today is all about designing. I hope to have some fun stuff up later and will also be releasing information about next weekend One Year Anniversary Crop at A Million Memories.

I wish everyone a beautiful, happy Saturday with much love!

*AMM* Wednesday RAK

As if all those other contests and calls weren't enough we also have our Wednesday RAK up this morning! Just click on the link and sign in to win this fab RAK. To sign up all you have to do is tell us what your favorite idea book is (or one you jsut can't wiat to get your hands on!)

Don't forget... you have to sign in here for the RAK, not on this blog! But feel free to tell me your fav book here too once you get done signing up. I love hearing about new books and people's reviews of them!

{Hugs}

*AMM* Contest: Crazy for Pirates

Don't forget... Everyone still has until this Saturday to enter our Crazy for Pirates Contest at *A Million Memories*. Check out this awesome prize pack that will be going to the winner!

Here's all the info:

This month we are: Crazy for Pirates!

We love it all: pirate ships, the beach, hidden treasure, skulls & crossbones, the list goes on and on!

To enter our August Contest create a *NEW* project (LO, mini album, altered project, anything goes!) using anything that has to do with ROCKIN’ PIRATES! Your theme doesn’t have to be all pirates but please do include something that uses them as a design element.

Go to the Crazy For Pirates Contest thread to get information on where to upload your entry. You can ask questions there and also see the other entries.

Good Luck!

*A Million Memories* Design Team Call

Due to the growth at A Million Memories - we are looking for three new design team members!

If you're interested in designing for AMM, please read the information below. We are accepting applications now through September 30, 2007. We will announce the three new designers once they have been contacted and have accepted their posts.

The design team position is a commitment through March 31, 2008.



GENERAL INFORMATION:

We are looking for three energetic, outgoing, talented, versatile and creative individuals who are team players for the term October, 2007 through March 31, 2008. Strong photography, digital scrapbooking and class experience is a plus, but not required. 



Interested applicants must register and post on the message boards at AMM during the DT call. We want to get to know you and we want you to get to know us and our community. Your design team experience at AMM will require daily activity on our boards. 



We keep our Design Team Members busy with all sorts of activities, i.e., monthly kits, manufacturer kits, newsletter, message boards, chats, classes, etc., so when considering whether you would like to apply for the DT position, please take into consideration the amount of time that will be required to fulfill your DT requirements.



Submit 2 new (not previously posted or published) original LO's and at least one altered item. LO's can be 8.5x11 or 12x12. Altered items are considered anything that is not a page.

All submissions should be emailed to info@amillionmemories.com.

The commitment to A Million Memories’ design team is exclusive. Our designers cannot hold design team positions with any competing kit club. Manufacturer design team appointments and teaching at your LSS are acceptable.



*Consistent and frequent message board participation is required.

*DT members are required to post at least four items per kit - 2-4 layouts, the altered item included in the kit (if there is one), and a card.

*Complete manufacturer sponsorship projects

*Part of your job will be to advertise the kit club and store and not competing businesses.

*Actively participate in a monthly newsletter and blog posts.

*Actively participate in challenges, organizing contests and vendor advertising.

*Promote AMM whenever possible. Example, if you have a blog, there should be a link to AMM. We will in turn post your blog on our blog.



WHAT DO OUR DESIGNERS RECEIVE?


*Our designers are given a free kit every other month containing the industry's latest and greatest products, plus extra supplemental products as compensation.

*Special sponsored manufacturer's kits every 3-6 weeks. A link to your projects is sent directly to the sponsored manufacturers by AMM. This will give you exposure directly to manufacturers.

*Product discounts (more detail will be provided to those who are selected for the team).

*Free product for special limited edition kits that you may (on occasion) design yourself from items in our store.

*Free product for special class kits that you will design yourself.

*Miscellaneous perks - free passes to CHA, opportunity to design with our kits, etc.

We have some exciting plans for 2007 and 2008 which will bring a lot of exposure to AMM and consequently, to our designers.



IF YOU ARE INTERESTED YOU NEED TO:



E-mail the following information to info@amillionmemories.com with:


• Name, mailing address, phone number and e-mail address (if different than the one you are sending the email from)

• Links to other online galleries that show your work (as well as your screen name)

• Link to your blog, if you have one

• A bio of yourself

• 2 new (not previously posted or published) original LO's and at least one altered item. LO's can be 8.5x11 or 12x12. Altered items are considered anything that is not a page.



Include the answers to the following questions in your email:



1) Why are you interested in a DT position with AMM?


2) Site commitment and participation: We'd like to know your thoughts regarding the message board and site participation. We are looking for designers who are team players and are committed to being involved and posting daily on our message board. We'd love to see how you would go about increasing general participation on our message board.


3) Have you ever designed for another website/company? If so, who?


4) Are you currently designing for another website/Company? If so, who?


5) Are you active on any message boards? Which ones? (please provide a few links to your posts and your user name)


6) How long have you been scrapbooking?



Note: None of the answers to the above questions will effect your chances of being on the Design Team . . .we are just curious. ; )



If you have any comments or questions, please email us at info@amillionmemories.com or check out the DT Callout thread at the AMM Message Board: here!

Good Luck to everyone who applies. I can't wait to see who joins out team!

I've Been Tagged!

I never get tagged so I was so excited to see that my good friend Mia from the AMM Message Board Tagged me! Mia is an amazing scrapper and writes a column for Scrapbytes an online Filipino Scrapbooking Publication. You can check out Mia's blog at The Adventures of Mia McScrappy!

So, on to who I'm tagging! All you AMM Bloggers watch out - I'm tagging you ALL! That includes our lovely Design Team and you too Alison & the AMM Blog!

But let's make this fun! No only are you "tagged" but I want to know what is on your current scrapping wishlist? Give me a Top 5 of newly released or coming soon products that you just can't wait to get your hands on!

Here is mine:

1. Love, Elsie ZOE!
2. Basic Grey Obscure (technically I'm wanting to stock up on everything BG right now!)
3. Journal Revolution (this book is going to ROCK check out the blog here)
4. New Elsie Book!
5. PurlSoho ... Retro Fabrics.

So the last one may not count but I'm so ready to be in NYC and hit up PurlSoho. I have some friends wanting me to design some projects for them (shh it's a secret right now) and I can't want to get to this store! They have the best Japanese Imports and awesome retro fabrics. I am so excited to start finding my little places in NYC to get a TON of goodies!

So what is everyone else wanting these days? Consider yourself tagged if you are reading this!

AMM September Kit Projects

I was so excited to get this month's kit from A Million Memories. It is so packed! Right away I wanted to used the Rusty Pickle chipboard to create a cool transparency frame. This is a project I have been wanting to do for awhile! (Especially with my one year anniversary coming up next weekend!)




I had also been wanting to start a mini-book that would, for me, really highlight my favorite parts of living in our first home together. The Scallop Coasters and Box (Maya Road) were so perfect for this.






Since this book is still a work in progress (I still have some coasters that I want special pictures for) I keep looking through the book and lately the page of my bathroom is like my favorite page. I can look at that picture forever it seems! I think I'm silently missing my perfect bathroom already. My bathroom is totally one of my favorite things about 751 and I doubt I'll find one just like it in NYC. For me this photo of my bathroom just totally captures the essence of that room. But I'm still so excited about the new rooms I'll have once we move and new experiences in a new space!

Last week I had to take a break from working with the AMM Kit to have my Moving Sale so I haven't made a DENT in all the awesome papers in it. I'm getting to work tonight to finish some layouts and I'll have more up soon!

I'm also planning the A Million Memories Anniversary Crop and information should be released soon. You won't want to miss this fun weekend Sept. 14th - 16 and all the awesome prizes up for grabs. Come celebrate with us !!

{Hugs!}

Long Time No Blog!

Well things have been crazy in the Taylor home. We had our Moving Sale this weekend. I was so busy I didn't even remember to post it here! Saturday went really well. We made some good money right away and were still selling up until 3pm when we were scheduled to stop. Sunday wasn't good AT ALL! We got a few browsers but didn't sell anything. I was happy with Saturday though so on to Ebay for the rest of the stuff!

I have actually started selling some things on ebay. Check them out here. Right now I only have two printers and some speakers up, the fun stuff will hopefully all be added by this week. I'm cleaning out my ScrapStash so be sure to keep looking!

I'm so glad the actual sale and everything is over. We did have so much fun though being outside all weekend, playing with our little Crystal, and just relaxing. Joe was such a huge help to me and this weekend really allowed us to stop, and do something together. It was a fun way to forget about the stress of moving and just reconnect.

Sorry no pics this post - I'm going to post up my September Projects with the A Million Memories Kit in just a few minutes!

Happy Labor Day!

Yummy Martha Patterns.

Hello Friday.


I wanted to share some yummy *discount* Martha that I discovered at Michael's the other day. I was so lucky to find this cute pack of three patterned notbooks for $1 !! I also got a pack of her Picnic papers for $2. They will make super cute invitations I thought, so to all of my friends (ahem ... Jeanne & Nicole) who are thinking about getting married, I'm already starting to come up with ideas for you!

I have so much going on today and this weekend but it's going to be creative, fun, and exciting! I am starting the plans for my Pageframes 6x6 Album. I'm really wanting it to come out perfect so I'm doing a lot of planning and stock-piling goodies to go in it! I also want to work more with the August Kit from A Million Memories before I get the September one. I got August late coming back from NYC but I love it so much. The patterns and colors in it are so awesome ... I think there may be a few left if you are interested, check here!

Here's the pic of the August Kit!


I'm also doing a lot to get ready for my garage sale next weekend (ahhh two weeks to be ready!) I'll be going through my scrap-stash to see if there's anything I know I won't use. I may be putting together a RAK or two!

Off to get back to work, I may post more later! Have a great weekend!

Music.

Since coming back from NYC I've been totally into music again. Music has been such a huge part of my life. My parents have always been really into music - especially my dad who has introduced me to so much great music and normally knows what's hot before I do! Plus, I trained in music for so long. I starting with grade school band (yup I'm a band geek), then vocal training, musical theatre, and dance in high school. Then I went to Columbia College of Chicago for musical theatre and then even after transferring from there to Purdue I never planned to stop being involved with music.

For so long I wasn't listening to anything at all new, which is actually kind of scary when I think about it! Since owning my own business I have retreated into my comfy playlists and old CD's, and kind of isolated myself from anything new.

So MUSIC is one of the big reasons why I am so stoked to move back to the city. I don't know how involved in music I will become again. I do know that hearing how music is growing, how all of the styles of music are constantly being revived and evolve, really makes me sing more than I have in a long time (and dance too). And anyone who has ever been close to me knows - when I'm singing I'm happy! So I'm going with the flow and won't assume anything about my life right now.

What this does mean is that I'm now on the constant lookout for NEW music!

Joe showed me this video today by Justice and I think it rocks. Justice is a French electro/house band and won the MTV Europe Best Video Award (you know when Kayne West got all upset! LOL.) Anyway, I'm a huge notebook doodler & T-Shirt fan so this video is like crazy inspiring...

Enjoy!

This the latest layout I've done and it pretty much sums up my feelings over the past few weeks. I'm all over the place! I have really no clue how I am going to get this garage sale organized (it's Sept. 1st & 2nd for any of you in the SW FL area, I'll put more info up later!), and pack the house, and do all the crazy projects & designing I've been planning! But I would have it any other way! Our life is moving in a totally new direction and we are going to have so much and adventure.

There are a TON of fun things going on at A Million Memories. So if you know me and haven't checked out my favorite online scrapping community, do it now!

I'll have more fun stuff to share later today... {HUGS}

Some Tuesday Inspiration.

I got a fun surprise in the mail this weekend! My mom and dad visited my sister in Oakland and sent Joe and I a box of some ChinaTown Goodies! We each also got a really cool T-Shirt. I love all the stuff we got, beautiful placemats and formal chopsticks, a sake set, and a calligraphy set too!

I also was surfing around my favorite new blog Apartment Therapy: New York and found this fun chair idea! Check them out and visit the blog for project instructions!



I'm off to scrap and will have more later! Happy Tuesday!

A Portrait. A Plan.

Hello Thursday.

I hadn't posted any pictures or portraits of my Joe for a really long time so I thought I'd share this hottie!



This is one of the portraits I took of him at PS1 while we were in NYC. The old school had a thousand awesome nooks and crannies to sneak into for awesome portraits. I didn't keep him from the party for too long though!

It's almost the weekend and I have so much to get done all over the house and some projects I want to get done as well. So - here is my weekend goal list (we'll see how much I do!)



Most of my work this weekend is going to be getting our yard sale ready. I want to firm up the date and be able to go get the permit Monday!

Have a great night!

Friday Night Scrap*Star Chat!

Isn't this butterfly book beautiful? This is just one of the gorgeous projects that Cheryl Mezzetti created using the *A Million Memories* August Kit. We were so lucky to have her as our Guest Designer this month!

We are also super lucky to be able to CHAT with Cheryl this Friday, August 17th at 6:00pm PST! Plus Ali & Michelle will be giving away some goodies throughout the evening!

Be sure to check out Cheryl's blog and her other creations with the AMM Monthly Kit - and we'll chit chat on Friday!!

Reuse.

This weekend I began the task of cleaning out our garage. It isn't horribly cluttered, but with the SW FLorida humidity it basically means I have to clean everything that was in there if I want to be able to sell it in a yard sale!

Besides all of the fun inspiration of seeing some "old" things in a *new* way I was really excited to see all of the fun re-usable stuff we had down there! As I was rolling up yards and yards of kraft packing paper and plastic bubble wrap I got so excited thinking about using these to pack with and then using them in art projects when we unpacked.

From the beginning I have told Joey that I want to move in the most efficient, cost-effective, and GREEN way possible ... and beginning the task got me thinking about so many new ways to reuse and recycle! I love when life breeds inspiration!

I have some fun Rivercity Rubberwork Stamps that I'm working on right now and a TON of fun projects I came up with while working in the garage yesterday, including a "Moving Out" Journal which I hope to start tonight.

Happy GREEN Monday!

*24 by 25* Challenge!

I hope I got this posted in time!

This is the fun LO/*BIG* To Do List that I did for Elsie Flannigan's BlogParty Challenge. This was a ton of fun to do today and it really got me excited about how much is happening in the next few months!

TFL!

Busy. Busy. Busy.

So I am a huge believer in "To Do" Lists. They help me focus and I tend to spend just as much time perfecting my to do list as I do getting the things on it finished so that helps me get into a creative groove! I have so many things in the "idea" phase right now that I am really looking forward to organizing my thoughts and getting some of these projects into the Creation! phase. My studio is insane right now but I am so many exciting things on the horizon that I'm bursting at the seams to get stuff done!

Right now I'm finishing up an challenge that Elsie put on her blog yesterday. 24 things I want to do by 25! Since this is such a huge transitional period for me I think that this challenge is really going to motivate me to push myself where I want to go physically, creatively, and professionally.

Oh and I have some exciting news on the horizon that involves a move and a *new* project but that's all I'm saying for right now!

*Smooches*

ADD Monday.

Yes I am having a ADD attack this fine Monday Morning. Or maybe it was all weekend...

Joe and I are home and settled again after our amazing trip up North. NYC was so incredible. I had forgotten just how alive I become in the city. So much action and inspiration!

I came home with a totally new outlook on my life and art. There are so many ideas running around in my head, so many things I want to do, but now I have to settle down and actually create!

There is a HUGE to do list I have running right now, a lot of scrapping I need to get done, and I want to totally re-vamp my blog ~ so hopefully today will be productive for me.

Michelle turned me onto this awesome blog called Print & Pattern which is totally inspiring and is a great way to check out new trends and goodies! Check it out!

These are my two favorite ladies right now ... I LOVE the style the new TLC LA Ink ads were done and I can't wait for the new show to start. And I finally got a bunch more Amy Winehouse music and am currently addicted to her!