just a quick reminder in case anyone may be reading in between courses...

the Reveal for Studio Calico's December kit is this evening...look at this beauty! couple of exclusives...i am in LOVE with those darn note/journaling cards with the vintage images on them. come and chat with us a few hours before misnight EST if your Turkey Day is complete...or you just need a quick break for it all, lol.

see you there!!

it's a weird, emotional day here for me.

because this fella will no longer be visiting our house.

look at him...

so jolly.

so happy.

so pretend, lol.

she mentioned last year that she thought Mom and Dad may really be Santa...but we thought we had one more year.

this year.

apparently, it wasn't meant to be.

she approached me this morning with her Christmas list...all 3 pages (front & back, lol) of it. she politely pointed out that these were the Webkinz she would like, this is the Wii game she hopes to find under the tree, she would love to shop after Christmas with a few gift cards from these stores...you get the picture.

and i asked her...

'Allie, why are you giving this list to me? You need to leave it out for Santa on Christmas Eve.'

to which she replied...

'Mom, it's ok. i know that it's really you and daddy, and that Santa is make believe.'

do you have any idea how difficult it was not to cry in front of her?

so i asked her why she thought this...and she gave me a few reasons. and she mentioned that the kids at school had been talking about it...and that she was the only one who said she still believed he was real.

and they laughed at her for being silly.

so that did it, i guess.

i know this sounds corny, but it really is kind of a big milestone, right? i mean, this means she isn't a baby anymore. not that i didn't know that already...but still. it's just one of those things.

and i'm having a hard time with it.

so after her revelation, i took a deep breath and this just came out of my mouth without thinking...

'Santa may not be real anymore Allie, but i dad and i will still do our best to make Christmas full of magic for you...don't ever forget that.'

sigh.

in my own words...

this... is an awesome book to pick up...especially if you sometimes struggle with journaling.

this time last year, i received an email from a gal i had never even met...the lovely Ms. Michele Skinner, Memory Makers Master '07. she claims to have seen my work over at 2peas, and fancied the way i journal lol. so she asked me to be a part of her book that she was working on all about this topic, and ONE YEAR LATER...it arrived in my mailbox.

check out that pic of me, lol...can i swap it out for a more recent one? (teehee)

i can't even begin to tell you how caught off guard i was that she believed in me enough to ask me to contribute to this project...this is a HUGE, HUMONGOUS deal for her, so i am still flattered beyond belief. but even better is the friendship that i've earned with her over the last 365-ish days...i can honestly say that she is just a genuinely good-hearted person...and one that i am fortunate and proud to call a friend.

so here are my 'contributions' to the book...

she provided us with basic 'prompts'...you'll understand what i mean when you see the book...and the rest was a free for all, lol. lots of talented ladies in between these pages...i can't wait to sit and read every single page. (am i the only one who reads every word of journaling when i'm flipping through a book or mag?!)

so anyway...thanks again Michele, for inviting me on your crazy road trip.

and big congrats to you my friend...you did it.

Studio Calico December...comin' at ya.

behold...snippets of the December Studio Calico kit in all it's glory.

i have been a scrapping FOOL this weekend, lol. working with this kit, a few other assignments and trying to squeeze in time to get together my December album, a la the fabulous Miss Ali. having fun with all of it, and the timing is perfect...

it's snowing here.

it isn't sticking yet, but it's our first snow of the season.

nothing like that to get you in the mood to stay inside, hunker down and have fun.

have a great week!

=)

(technically) she voted.

i know i'm a week late in posting, but it's been one crazy week around here.

let's just say that it started last Tuesday in the middle of the night...2:30am to be exact...when i 'sensed' someone standing at our bedroom door.

that would have been our daughter...politely letting us know that she was going to be sick.

and then every 30 minutes after that...until 5am...that's exactly what she was.

poor girl.

then she shared it with Mike.
and my Mom.
and eventually me.

ugh.

why did mine have to hit in the middle of a case at work though? i mean, if it had happened earlier, i could have called in and stayed home...but no. i drove all the way to Cleveland yesterday just to get sick 3 hours after clocking in. so i drove home and laid in bed ALL DAY yesterday.

sleeping and sweating it out.

so today i feel human again, lol.

but anyway...

she wanted to go with us last week to vote...to see the 'process'. (yes, her exact words) so we went at 10:30am...NO line, and voted our hearts out. we use touch screens here, so i touched my vote and then she touched 'OK'...so technically, she voted, lol. and she stayed up to watch the returns with us for a bit.

pretty cool that she's so interested in all of this. i've talked to many people who said that their kids wanted to tag along as well...very awesome. get them interested early so they are eager to follow through when their turn comes.

just got my December Studio Calico kit the other day, so i have been playing around with that...some fun things in store for everyone this month.

hope you're having a great week...stay warm wherever you are!
=)

one proud moment.

i have to tell you, sometimes there are just moments as a parent when you can't help but be proud of your child...and this is definitely one of them.

Allie had told us about an assignment done during class a few weeks ago where they were asked to write a paragraph about why the school levy should be renewed on Tuesday...and then she dropped it. apparently, 4th, 5th and 6th graders across the district were participating...they were to be sent in by the teacher to the Chronicle Telegram (our local newspaper) for the editorial section.

so imagine our SHOCK yesterday when we saw this in the newspaper... that's our kid!!!
and it looks like she was one of just a handful of kids from across the district whose letters were chosen...i choked up a bit to see her name in there, knowing that it caught someone's eye enough to select it.

but then i read her words...and the tears started flowing, lol.

to say that we're proud or our girl doesn't even cover it. but to read this and see that she gets it...that she has a sense of what's going on is very cool. we talk about world events and politics A LOT at home (Mike and i sometimes sit on opposite sides of the fence, lol...but we figure it's good for to hear BOTH sides of the story), but you never really know if your kids are actually listening, you know?

now we know.

just finally getting around to posting my Studio Calico layouts for November...it's been crazy around here between Halloween, my mom's b-day and dinner at my brother's house last night!!

this one was WAY different for me...but i felt like 'playing', does that make sense, lol?

i swear i did not ask her to pose like this, lol...

one of my all-time fave pics of her...

was she seriously this little at one time?!

love you, mama...

a few things at home that make me happy...

LOVED the kit this month...the alpha stamp set is AMAZING and i will use it over and over again. and have you heard about the 'rip strips' that Tinkering Ink made exclusively for SC??!! adhesive fabric in very cool patterns...think of the consistency of fabric medical tape. and you can play with them over and over until you get the look you want...they aren't too sticky until you absolutely want them stuck, lol.

hope you have an awesome week!!

=)