Documentary.

Studio Calico's July kit.

maybe it's just me, but the title of this kit kind of sums up what i feel like my scrapbooking has been all about lately. and i'll openly admit...i had a hard time with this kit. i feel like i kept reaching for the same papers/products over and over, lol...but in the end i ended up with a few pages that i really love.

that's what counts, right?

case in point...this one here. while we were at Put-in-Bay for the day a few weeks ago, we ventured up to the top of the Perry Monument to see the view from 300+ feet high and catch a quick history lesson (Mike being the history freak that he is, lol). we were wandering around the balcony looking around at the other nearby islands and i turned around to look for Allie and found her just like this...perched on the edge, deep in thought about who knows what. when i printed it out, she just looked so contemplative...and it for some reason made me think about a conversation we had had with her recently about decision making and choices. LOVE these big metal numbers from Making Memories...love them! this one is about the journaling as well...i apologize for what seems like a theme...i scrapbook alot lately about talks/words/thoughts i have with/about her and her behavior/attitude/demeanor. but it's what is happening right now with us, and kind of where we're at today. tween life is pretty dang awesome most of the time...but it's also given me more grey hairs than i care to admit, lol.


since i'm going the honest route...i had NO idea what to do with this frame stamp when it showed up. i mean, zero. so i just framed Allie's smiley face with it here...i like how it turned out, but (as usual) after seeing how the rest of the design team used it seven gajillion different ways i am now inspired! this page makes me happy though...i used that darn ledger paper to the bits, lol.


just a very simple one that came about while i was flipping through some old pics of Mike & i...i noticed that we both had that crazy toddler scream on our faces in more than one photo from when we were kids and set them aside for some reason. then it clicked...i knew Allie had done the same exact thing while we were on vacation years ago, lol. i know we didn't tell her to scream like that...it had to be genetics, right?!

this one was that one layout you have that just kind of falls together on it's own, if that makes sense. i started with this old photo of my family and i on vacation back in 1978, and just started adding tidbits here and there. i traced around one of those big Making Memories metal numbers with a slick writer just to do something different, and ended up really liking how it turned out. thank you to whoever the stranger from the boardwalk was that my Dad handed the camera over to...i love that you left me room to see the ocean, the lifeguard stand AND still have room for my title, lol.




now.

i haven't done a 2-pager since probably 2006. i always like when others do them...i do. and originally i started with WAY more photos from our day on the island, and i had intended to line them all up in a nice neat row across both pages...but that didn't look right. and while i am embarassed to admit to anyone how long this page took to reach completion, suffice it to say that part of that delay was waiting for the chest pain to go away. (haha...didn't really have chest pain, but i was indeed stressed.) most of us accepted the challenge to do a 2-pager in honor of SC's 2nd birthday...so i couldn't back out, lol. in the end, i like how it turned out...but am still seriously relieved that i am done with it.

so there you have it.

i can't believe that Studio Calico is 2 years old already.

they have come so far...and have really only just begun.

and in those 2 years, i have been lucky enough to make some amazing friends and be a part of a community that continues to be the best place to hang around, talk shop and wax poetic about this crazy hobby that brings us all together.

thanks April & Scarlet for providing us with a place to call home.

more sneaks + love for Sweet Shoppe

a few more sneaks for Studio Calico's July kit...

totally versatile kit...and don't forget, Subscribers will now have the opportunity to purchase the add-ons starting at noon EST this SATURDAY!! the main kit will go up for sale later that night at midnight EST, and we'll be chatting for awhile before that...so don't forget to stop by if your Saturday night will be spent at home!

here's a layout i made for Collage Press...used the Sweet Shoppe line for just about all of it. i am in love with the die-cut circles...and of course the label die-cuts as well. make sure to stop by the Collage Press BLOG for a fun way to win the entire KNAVE OF HEARTS collection!! after much whining, summer has finally hit here.

90+ degrees.

humidity that makes my hair stand on end.

and the smell of sunscreen on every piece of clothing we own.

ahhhh...summer.

:)

i got that sneak, sneak POW...

(sorry...i canNOT get that Black Eyed Peas song out of my head, lol...)

lots of fun things happening in the July Studio Calico kit and add-ons...and with the new 'Subscribers have Dibs' program, they're sure to be a hit!! here are a few sneaks of what i've done so far...

cool stamps?

check.

cool thngs to outline?

check.

cool colors?

double check.

what's not to love??!!

if you love Collage Press and you know it...

clap your hands!! (sing along with me...you know the tune!!) this is my layout for today's DT gallery post at Collage Press...Miriam challenged us to use the die-cut papers and rings...and the prompt was 'if you could do things differently as a child, what would you change?' perfect timing since i JUST found these old photo booth pics of me at the tender age of 9 over at my mom's house, lol. (i saved the one with what i shall call the 'classic' Nik expression, lol...watch for it in the future as it's sure to be a good laugh)

anywho...

the real reason i'm posting about this is to offer you a chance to win some of their newest 2 lines, Knave of Hearts and Sweet Shoppe!! just head over to the blog and leave a comment...SOMEONE has to win, wouldn't it be awesome if it were YOU?!!

keeping my fingers crossed for everyone!!
=)

tough times.

it's natural, right?

to have days/weeks where nothing seems to go your way and every time you turn around, you're faced with another rough patch?

please say yes...even if it's just to make me feel better, lol.

just a few things lately that have stressed me to the max...you know when you go from your heart beating out of your chest to calm in 10 seconds flat?

and then you repeat that same sequence?

yep.
that's where i'm at.
i think Lola is doing a pretty good job of summing up my feelings in this photo.
ugh.
i crave calm right about now, lol.

good news for Studio Calico subscribers EVERYWHERE!!!

Studio Calico subscribers will now get an advanced opportunity to purchase new add-on kits each month. Beginning with July's kit, subscribers will be able to purchase their add-ons and shop items 12 hours in advance of reveal (12:00 noon on the 27th). Some add-ons will also be held in reserve and posted for sale at 12:00am for the traditional reveal.
Not a subscriber? Email waitinglist@studiocalico.com now to preorder your subscription!

exciting news indeed!

i know how tough it is for our East Coast members...let alone those of you across the globe! hopefully, this should alleviate having to hold your eyelids open with toothpicks, lol. you have to love this place...YOU ASK, THEY ACCOMMODATE!!

sneak peeks tomorrow night at MIDNIGHT EST...hope to chat with everyone then!!

randomness.

on a tuesday evening.

• went to Cedar Point today with Allie and just walked around for a few hours. she talked me into boarding the Mean Streak...which has EARNED it's name, i assure you. i know better...i mean, does this 36-year old body belong on a coaster that causes you to feel your brain rattle about inside of your skull? of course not. so i rode it twice.
• school is OUT. as of last thursday, girlfriend is 2 months away from being a bona fide 5th grader. wha?? that girl blew out of 4th grade with straight A's for the entire year...with hardly any sweat on her brow about it. needless to say, we were more proud of her than ever. she was assigned to the teacher she wanted for next year, a 'DUDE' (as she put it, lol)...so all is well.
• getting into the crazy days of summer...and while the weather has been kind of cool for this time of year, it looks like it's starting to warm up a bit.
• camping with the Girl Scouts isn't what it used to be. Allie went on her first 3 day outing last weekend...they went to Mohican, slept in a cabin with a toilet and a shower, rafted for a few hours and then huddled around a camp fire. where were the hikes? the gathering of fire wood? the identification of poison ivy with it's giveaway 3-point leaves? apparently, the only similarity to when i used to camp as a G.S. were the pie iron pizzas, lol.
• did i mention my brain is thumping inside my head right now? i'm thinking it has something to do with that roller coaster...
• while girlfriend was away at camp, Mike & i did a whole lot of...nothing, lol. we cleaned the house, did laundry, watched the US team beat Honduras in the World Cup qualifying round...and realized just how quiet this house is while she is gone. we thought we would enjoy it...but ended up wishing she were home after a very short while.

a few layouts for Lily Bee...using their die-cuts, which are just very cool.

not very exciting, is it?
non-exciting can be a good thing.
:)

hard work pays off.

yes it does.

case in point: our girls U10 soccer team this year...we were in the playoffs over the weekend, and ended up coming in 3rd in the county. not too shabby, methinks...especially for a team that had a fall season where they won ZERO games, and a spring season before that where they only won 2. Mike and his assistant coach have brought these girls so far...and for a guy who knew nothing about soccer, he deserves a lot of the credit.

these girls have worked hard.

no, let me say that again...they have worked HARD.

they've been together for a few seasons now, and it's finally starting to come together. in fact, they are looking darn good. but i think the best part for me is seeing them gel as a team. to hear them cheer each other on from the sidelines, encourage their teammates when it looks like they can't possibly win...and especially when at the end of a game, they dash over to the other team and tell them that they appreciate the opportunity to play against them...well, it makes my heart swell with pride. these girls have matured into a team of close friends that would probably jump through a fire to help another one out of a jam, throw their arm around the other's shoulders and remind them that together, they can do just about anything.

i wasn't very active in team sports as a kid. they weren't as popular as they are now, in fact the only options for girls were softball and basketball (neither of which made me want to jump up and play, lol). now, Mike? Mike is an entirely different story. he played baseball for as long as he can remember...even throughout college. and at first, i looked at Allie playing a team sport as just another way for her to get some exercise. but in the long run, i've learned that the exercise is just an added bonus.

what really matters is the concept of working together as a team.

as an only child, i think it does wonders for her to be a part of something like this...to be reminded that doing one thing as an individual can make a huge difference to the team. good or bad, frustrated or cool & calm...what she does affects every single girl on that team.

it's teaching her responsibility.

they depend on her, she depends on them.

alone, she wouldn't last for 2 minutes out there, lol.

but with them behind her?
heck.

she can do anything.