Gettin' By

I'm home. And I'm tired.

Got in super late last night (well, around 1 am this morning!) and have spent the day catching up, snuggling kiddos, unpacking, and generally trying to function on about 5 hours sleep.  Coffee, anyone??  CHA was an overwhelming but amazingly fun experience and I'm so glad I got the chance to go.  I've got a camera full of photos of my favorite new products & new friends as well.  And I will share them, I promise. But right now, I need a nap.  I'll post when I'm not so comatose, OK?

And to my CHA roomies concerned with my little issue: I just wanted to let you know that I had another encounter with Darth Vader this morning. And he was even scarier than I thought.  Oh yeah, can we please order Thai food on the FIRST night we arrive next time?

Love to you all!!

While I'm Gone...

You didn't think I'd leave you hanging for five whole days while I party at CHA, did you?  No, I'm nice that way.  Before I left, I had the chance to create some pages as guest designer for Scrap for A Cure, a kit club that donates 5% of their total sales to a different charity each month.  The kit will debut on February 1, but I wanted to give you a sneak peak of what I did with it:

 

And that, my friends, is all I have for today.  Have a great one!

The psych majors can have a field day with this one.

I come from a long line of women who are list-makers.  My oma made lists.  My mom makes lists. And I make lists, too. There's nothing like crossing things off a list to make you feel in control of your life.  Especially when that list is typed in a crisp, clean font like Helvetica Neue. (That's my own personal touch on this family tradition.)

Needless to say, in my preparation for CHA, my lists have been abundant.  I've got the What To Pack list, the Things To Do Before You Can Leave list, the Booths Not To Miss list, and the People to Meet list.  But perhaps the most extensive of all my lists is the one I'm leaving for my dear husband and mother, who will be stepping into my role during my absence.  Now, both of these people are responsible, college-educated adults who are very capable of caring for my kids and house while I'm gone.  Yet I still feel the need to leave them a list telling them the FROZEN waffles are in the FREEZER, and the FRUIT is in the PRODUCE DRAWER.  Because, you know, if I didn't, they might not find it.  And then there's the maps I printed, just in case anyone forgets how to get to Hayden's school (it's about 4 blocks from our house).  Oh, I made sure to note DON'T ENTER THE PICK-UP LANE DRIVING THE WRONG WAY just in case they miss the huge DO NOT ENTER signs posted there. 

I'm not sure if this confirms that I am completely anal, or just deluding myself into thinking no one else can do my job.  Maybe a little of both.

At any rate, I'm pretty sure that the mere existence of these lists will prevent any and all disasters from ocurring while I'm gone.  Including plane crashes, lost luggage, and other random acts of God.  At least that's what I keep telling myself.  And on that note, I've got a few more items to cross off my list before heading to the airport.  Have a great weekend and check back next week for a full report on CHA, ya hear?!? 

CHA Bound, Baby!

On Friday, I head out to Anaheim for five days to participate in CHA Trade Show.  For the three of you reading this blog that aren't scrappers, CHA is a trade event where manufacturers debut their new product lines and retailers have the opportunity to order product for their stores.  And it's not just scrapbooking manufacturers - there's also paper crafts, fabric, quilting, needlecrafts as well.  This will be my first trip to the convention and I'm as stoked as a kid going to Disneyland.  (Which, by the way, is very near the convention, but don't tell my kids that!)  I don't exactly know what to expect, but I'm thinking it will be a lot like a Star Trek convention for crafters, minus the Klingon costumes. (Though I am packing mine, just in case.)

So yeah, I am all geeked up to see the new product lines from my favorite companies. There's nothing like a great paper design to get a girl all excited.  Stop looking at me like I'm a big weirdo. 

As pumped as I am to see all the new products, I'm even more excited to meet some of the people involved in this crazy hobby. When I first discovered online scrapbook forums (back in 2002 at Two Peas!) I was looking for inspiration for my pages.  But through those forums, I got to know other scrappers just like me.  You see, in scrapbooking, you are documenting a portion of life. And when you share these works, you get to know a lot about the creator.  You discover their kids names and birthdays, their favorite vacations, how they celebrate holidays, what their wedding was like. You get little glimpses into their world and personalities. You find out their favorite beer and shoe size (OK, maybe that's just you, Steph!) Through their pages, you start to feel like you "know" them, even though you've never met.  So for me, meeting these girls that share my passion for paper and photos is going to be the highlight of this trip.  Because, to quote my friend Carolyn, "That's really what's it all about....relationships."

So now I need to stop blogging and finish the million and one things on my to-do list before Friday.  One of which includes picking up my Klingon costume at the dry cleaner.  Wishing you a wonderful Wednesday, my friends!

Celebrate Eight!

Happy Monday!  Happy Martin Luther King Day!  And probably most importantly, Happy Birthday to my sweet Hayden!  He's officially eight today.  We celebrated with family and friends on Saturday, and last night Hayden had some friends from school over for another little party.  And in the course of those two days, I think the number of Legos in our house has doubled. Which makes Hayden one happy boy.

In a lucky twist of fate, he actually gets the day off school for his birthday, since it's MLK. Riely is off too, so we are headed to the aquarium and a birthday lunch.  Tonight we'll wrap up our celebration with a few gifts and some leftover ice cream cake. (All hail ColdStone!)

Hope your Monday holds it own reason to celebrate!  Have a good one!

The Morning Gene must be recessive.

My son Hayden is a morning person.  Yes, yes he is.  I do not know where he got this trait, because neither Mike or I really like the whole process of waking up.  We learned early on in our relationship that speaking to each other within two hours of waking was generally a bad idea.  We both wake up sloooooowly, and need to consume a significant amount of caffeine to start functioning. We don't socialize before this point, but rather use primate-like grunts worthy of a Dian Fossey documentary.

But not Hayden.  No, he's pretty much in a great mood from the second he hops out of bed, ready to discuss the intricacies of Star Wars Legos sets, the new track he unlocked on Mario Kart, or his recent dream of becoming the next R.L. Stein. He's a virtual stream of conversation as soon as sees you're up.  Luckily, he accepts my grumbled uh-huhs as I concentrate on pushing the brew button on the coffee machine and wonder where the heck he gets all this pre-dawn energy.  And can I bottle it up?  And sell it on Craigslist?

But this morning was a bit different.  Instead of the usual stream of conversation that usually starts when he sees me descending the stairs, he was unusually quiet.  I started the coffee pot and went into my office, noticing he hadn't even turned on the tv yet.  A few minutes later, he comes in and gives me a hug, saying:

Mom, I hope you know I don't need any presents for my birthday this year.  Having you as a mom is the best gift I could ever have!"

My first reaction was, of course, to wonder what he had broken, spilled, or otherwise ruined. Should I be expecting a call from the principal today?  And what did you do to your sister?  Then of course, I had to swab his mouth for DNA testing. Because really, could anyone with my genes be this nice in the morning? Are you kidding me?  A mere 12 hours earlier he was telling me how mean I was to make him do homework for a whole 30 minutes....and now I am a "gift?"

Well, yes, apparently so.  After a thorough inspection of the house and his sister, all was found to be well.  While I'm still not convinced we share the same DNA, I'm going to accept this as one of those little moments that make mommyhood so worthwhile.  And really, regardless of what the DNA test says, I'm keeping him. He may just turn me into a morning person, after all.

The Giant Piece of Worthless Crap rides again.

Wow - it's already Wednesday.  This week is slipping away from me. Hayden's birthday is on the 19th, so we have several little celebrations planned this weekend.  I still need to wrap gifts, get a cake, and clean this house, a task I've managed to put off for weeks now.  I should have just made it a New Year's Resolution:  Avoid housework.  It's one goal I'm confident I could accomplish.

So speaking of housework, remember my broken dishwasher from several weeks back?  The appliance I now refer to as Giant Piece of Worthless Crap?  Well, it's not so worthless anymore, as we just spent over $400 to get it running again. Yes, after weeks of perplexing the repairman and hours of phone calls to the Frigidaire Hotline seeking help for our suicidal dishwasher, we finally found the problem.  Of course, it happened to be the one part that is no longer under warranty.  Lovely.  But for the first time in more than a month, last night I was able to load up the dishwasher and not wash dishes by hand.  And let me tell you, a running dishwasher is a thing of beauty, people!  Washing dishes by hand might build character, but as it turns out, my character is a big wussy girl who can't deal with dishpan hands. But if you're a regular reader, you probably already knew that.

I'll leave you with a few creations from my hands that are no longer washing dishes (say hallelujah with me!)  Just a couple of pages about the littles and their new hobbies:

all papers & brads from Studio Calico Center Stage kit
title - Studio Calico Noah stamps
journaling - Studio G stamps (from Michaels)

all supplies from Studio Calico Bibliography kit

Hope your day is filled with lots of properly functioning modern conveniences!

And this is why we will never be asked to present a Golden Globe Award...

Award season kicked off last night with the Golden Globes and I, for one, couldn't be happier to have our television tuned to something other than football!  Unfortunately I missed most of the red carpet due to the end of the Steelers/Chargers game, so I made Mike watch the whole awards ceremony to make up for it.  Of course, making him sit through an awards ceremony is a lot like making me watch golf....I commentate the whole time, trying to make it more interesting.  Usually this involves extended critiques on the golfer's fashion and what he may be saying to his caddy when the cameras aren't looking.  "Do these pleated pants make my ass look too wide?  I knew I should have worn the argyle socks!"

At any rate, Mike's running commentary throughout the whole program centered around, what else?  Boobs!  Case in point: When Laura Dern won her award, this was the conversation that followed:

Mike:  Wow.  I think she got a breast reduction.
Me:  Nah, she's always been small!  Don't you remember Jurassic Park?
Mike:  No, I'm sure she's had work done.  Just look at her!
Me:  It's the dress. It's making her look smaller.
Announcer:  This is Laura Dern's first Golden Globe win.
Mike:  What?  That's not Pamela Anderson???

You see what I'm dealing with people??

At any rate, moving on to some important business:  Thanks to all who left comments on Friday and over the weekend.  Wow!  I don't think this blog has ever seen that much traffic.  (And I'm sure it has nothing to with the fact that 2 out of the last 3 posts mention the word BOOB.)  But yes, it is a fabulous idea book.  And I actually found one more copy in my stash to give away, so I've drawn 3 names to receive this issue:

WOW! Congrats on one year! I would love a stab at winning this great giveaway! I so need this book. I am stuck in 12 x 12 mode and I need some inspiration to get out of it!!! Thanks for the chance!    ~Mary
Posted by: Mary Demmons | January 11, 2009 at 07:32 PM

I love the car barf stories! :) And I wouldn't mind winning a book either! :) Kathy
Posted by: Kathryn Martin | January 10, 2009 at 07:01 PM

i love your blog! you're incredibly real. and it's refreshing. i love it. thank you! 
Posted by: Alissa | January 09, 2009 at 10:01 AM

So Mary, Kathy, and Alissa: email me your addresses and I'll send those out to you!

Have a great Monday folks!

Psssst! Hey you! Wanna get something for nothing??

I just realized that this week marks the one-year anniversary for my blog.  Who would've thought I had that many cat barf stories and fart jokes to share?  But here I am, still babbling on.  And there you are, still reading.  So in a small effort to repay you, I thought I'd offer up a small token of my appreciation.  No, you won't ever get back those wasted moments you spend reading this drivel, but you could get a creative, idea-packed magazine in your mailbox.

Here I am, opening my dark trench coat to reveal not one, but TWO copies of Simple Scrapbook's latest special issue, Quick & Easy Photo Albums.  You know you want one!  So c'mon, leave me a comment and on Monday I'll draw two names to receive this inspiring issue.

Have a fabulous weekend, ya hear?

Is football season over yet??

After a New Year's weekend filled with college bowl games, in addition to having the television tuned to the Fiesta Bowl on Monday night, and the GMAC Bowl last night, I think it's safe to say that three of our four family members are sick and tired of football.  Seriously.  Our Wii is connected to the prime football-watching TV, which means we are only allowed to race our Mario Karts when it's halftime.  And frankly, that sucks.

Hayden drove the point home last night, while we were patiently waiting for the second quarter to end, by asking, "So Dad, what game is on tomorrow night?  The TOILET Bowl??"

Mike was not amused.  I, on the other hand, giggled for at least 15 minutes.  Seems my sarcasm gene has been passed down after all.

At any rate, while the football schedule rolls on, I have found some evening time for scrapping.  Here's a few of my latest:

all supplies (except letters) from the Studio Calico Center Stage kit
letters (American Crafts)

die cut paper (Creative Imaginations)
transparency (Hambly Studios)
letters (Making Memories)
large flower & brad (Prima)
felt flowers (Heidi Swapp)
butterfly stamp (Studio Calico)
rhinestones (MAMBI)
ribbon (RIbbon FX)
button

Have a wonderful Wednesday!