Suzie Q. Scrapper

First Page for 2010 Yearbook DONE!

2010-02-07T09:24:00.000-08:00

Here it is... my first page for 2010 .. now I only am behind about 6 pages! UGH!

Scapbook 2009 DONE!

2010-01-03T11:46:00.000-08:00

My 12 months of hard work has finally paid off, our 2009 Family Year Book is complete! With a total of 89 pages this book is ready to be ordered! If you would like to see it here is the link.

I found my mo jo

2009-11-29T17:54:00.001-08:00

I have been digi scrappin like crazy for the past two weeks. I had fallen behind on pages so I need to catch up. Once I started it was like ridding a bike : ).

I cannot believe in more more month my 3rd family year book will be complete! It feels like just yesterday LJ showed me her first book at Champps- Remember that LJ?? My pages are below and they are not in order : ( .

Thank you to Yin Designs and Mandagirl Creations for their amazing templates and to Kevin and Amanda for their fonts and freeebies. I actually bought my very first kit from Creations by Rachael. For 2 years I have been all about the freebies. It helped to get the Mo Jo going , what can I say. Rachael's kits are so great I am willing to pay for them : )

Give Away!

2009-11-05T14:54:00.000-08:00

Go here http://www.kevinandamanda.com/whatsnew/ for a terrific 2 kit giveaway by Creative By Crystal. There are 2 kits being given away. One October and One November kit being given away. There is more then one copy of each kit being given away! All you have to do is post a comment to win! Go For it -it could be you :)

my house is dirty but my scrapbook is up to date : /

2009-09-14T03:41:00.000-07:00

It has been a few months but this blog finally got some attention!

I have not made time to clean my floors, vacuum or dust, but I have made time to scrap book. Not sure how I feel about that. I am up to date minus a page from Mikey's Birthday party friday night. Here are some pages I have done ......

be on the look out...

2009-06-03T10:34:00.001-07:00

Creations be Rachael and Late Night Scraps have a new kit coming out. Be sure to Check Rachael's site for more info....

My Secret Garden

2009-05-24T11:49:00.001-07:00

Simple and Beautiful!! This kit allows you to do so much! Buy Creations By Rachaels kit at Pretty Scrappy and get a bonus...

Here are my layouts....

Some New Lay Outs!

2009-05-06T16:29:00.000-07:00

These were done w/ Creations By Rachaels newest kits! I am loving the my little artist kit!!

deal time!

2009-05-01T16:30:00.001-07:00

Rachael has got some good ones......

New Colab kit

2009-05-01T16:10:00.000-07:00

Creations By Rachael has a new colab kit at Pretty Scrappy! It is only $3.50 today!!

Easter Day by CBR

2009-04-15T04:38:00.000-07:00

Look at this very cute kit by Creations by Rachael! It is a must have. You can buy it here Pretty Scrappy or here Digital Candy.

Hannah by CBR

2009-04-10T04:23:00.000-07:00

Hannah by Creations by Rachel is acailable now!Get is at Pretty Scrappy or Digital Candy!

catching up

2009-03-25T16:02:00.000-07:00

It has been a rough week! Nate started to climb out of his crib, so we had to switch him to a big boy bed and mikey has had horrible allergies. I managed to catch up on layouts for the '09 scrapbook. I was feeling so behind, but when I looked at my pictures I only need two more LO to be up to date. I might need to squeeze in one more of Nate and his big boy bed, but for now here are my latest...

check it out..

2009-03-21T04:37:00.001-07:00

Riding Dirty!

2009-03-17T16:38:00.000-07:00

Rachael has a new kit! Here is a sneak preview. Go to Creations by Rachael for details on great sales!!

Shape Up is here!!

2009-03-05T05:26:00.000-08:00

Would you love to share you love of digi scrapping w/ your kids? One of the digi-scrap designers that I love, Amy Sumrall, came up with an amazing design idea for kids. She has designed "Shape Up". Shape Up is a program that includes "How to" video's and shapes so that kids can create their own pictures. If you remember color forms from the 70's, her program is just like that. The program is on sale at The Digi Chick for $7.19.

Amy was kind enough to give me the program a few days ago. My daughter, Sophie who is 5 years old, used Photo Shop Elements and created her own picture! She and I had so much fun! She has done at least one to two pictures a day since Amy gave it to us! Check out Sophie's work below. Don't forget to visit Amy's site for more information about this amazing program and other goodies! Amy is always giving away freebies. Her site is a must see!!! Don't forget to leave her some love!!

April Fools in March!

2009-03-03T05:57:00.000-08:00

My friend asked me to create a birthday invitation for her daughter Anna. Her birthday is on April 1st! My girlfriend has wanted to have an upside down, backwards, inside out birthday party for Anna for a while. Anna will be 6 this year so my friend Lisa thought this would be a great year to have it! Six year olds love this silly kind of stuff. I was excited for the challenge of creating a one of a kind birthday invitation. Lisa brought me a poem that she wanted included. We talked a little about the layout, and I was off to create. Here is what I came up with....

Front

Inside

Into the Woods

2009-02-25T13:55:00.000-08:00

Creations by Rachael has a new kit called Into the Woods. This kit is so big it is almost like getting two kits for the price of one! You can pick it up at Pretty Scrappy, Devine Digital and Digital Candy. It is 25% off and you get tons of free quick pages if you buy it from Pretty Scrappy. Better hurry this is a limited time offer! Here is the kit and my LO's....

2 more Lo's for February!

2009-02-22T07:50:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we had a thaw in NJ. One Sunday it was in the 50's. So I put the kids boots on (so they would not be a mess from all of that melted snow), grabbed my camara, and headed to the park. It was not really sunny, but the air was warm it felt great to be outside. I was really happy with my pictures I got some great shots. I made a 2 page LO using a template 88 by Yin and a Creations by Rachaels XOXO kit. I try to add quotes to some of my Lo's to spice them up. I usually find them at the quote garden. I had to tweek the template a little, but love how they turned out. Check em out......

Juicy Pop get it while it's HOT!!

2009-02-11T11:15:00.001-08:00

A picture is worth a thousand words...........

Rachael has created Juicy Pop and it is available at Pretty Scrappy. If you purchase it before 2-17 you will get a special free qp set. Don't wait go check it out. Here are two LO's I made with this kit.....

I am in love with Kevin and Amanda

2009-02-07T17:51:00.000-08:00

Can you tell I am home on a Saturday night with nothing to do-2nd post in 10 minutes. Onto business- I just found Kevin and Amanda and I am in love! These two are sooo cute and have a terrific site/blog! The cover two of my favorite topics, food (recipes) and scrapbooking!! Check this out.. they also create personal fonts for FREE!!! Very cool, click here for information. If you want to see font's they have already created click here. Thank you Kevin and Amanda! I am a fan!!

Font Find and Installing Fonts!

2009-02-07T17:24:00.001-08:00

Surfing around today I found a great blog called The Allie Hoopes Blog. The blog is by Allie Marie and she generously gives fonts away! She has taken a little break from creating new font's, but there are tons on her site for the taking! From the pictures on her site, it looks like she has her hands full with a newborn.

Her fonts are so fun and easy to install. I was making installing the fonts harder then it was. I did not realize that once you install them on your desktop, that they would be available on all programs on your computer. Silly me, I was trying to figure out how to install them in an individual program. Allie Marie walks you through installing on your desk top on her blog. Click here for directions.

here are a few samples of her work......

Nate's Birthday LO'S FINALLY!

2009-02-02T06:40:00.001-08:00

I am loving the first LO. After getting my 2008 Album back, I really do think that journaling is the key to a great page. There are so many little things that I want to remember. My favorite all time picture from Nate it the 3rd one on the 1st LO. His hands are folded nicely on his face, he is satisfied from his cupcake, he has colorful hands from our party craft, and he is just taking it all in!

I know a good deal when I see one!

2009-01-27T13:47:00.000-08:00

This is a MUST buy from Creations by Rachael! She is selling her entire store for $30!!! She has another deal that allows you to be in her "Kit Club". This sounds amazing and it is a bargin. Rachael's kits are terrific and they keep getting better! She is always coming up with new and creative kits. Do yourself a favor and grab one of these deals (or both ; )) at Pretty Scrappy

Freshly Baked by Rachael

2009-01-26T05:36:00.000-08:00

Baking kits are few and far between so make sure you grab this one from Creations by Rachael. She is offering a coupon for 25% off the kit if you buy it from Pretty Scrappy. You will pay only $3.75 for this great kit and several quick pages! What are you waiting for Head over to Rachael's site and grab the coupon, then head over to Pretty Scrappy and check out her Freshly baked kit!

still loving textures and layers!!

2009-01-12T13:20:00.000-08:00

Once again Rita over at CoffeeShop has something new and exciting. MORE FREE TEXTURES!! She has made some valentine textures. Go to her blog and check them out!! I took a picture and tried two different textures. Keep in mind I am a newbie at layers. I opened my picture, then I cropped it. One I left color the other I changed to black and white. In both of the pictures after adjusting the opacity of the texture, I used the eraser on the kids faces. I lowered the opacity on the eraser and tried to create a heart shape. FUN STUFF!! TY Rita!

Layers/ Masks and Thank You Rita!

2009-01-07T10:37:00.000-08:00

For several months I have been afraid of masking and layers in PSE, but not anymore! I was determined to not be scared of the big bad layers and dove in. I read SEVERAL tutorials and kind of pieced them together. The one I found most helpful was by Rita. Hopefully Rita over at Coffee Shop does not think I am a stalker : ). I am all about checking her site for tutorials and free actions. She is very generous and is always up to something new and interesting!

I used a tutorial from her blog titled Coffee Shop Tutorial Attic Vintage. She gives step by step directions. For more instructions she has another Layer Masks Tutorial. The wonderful thing is you really can't mess up! There are so many variations on layers it is amazing. When I used to teach art, I told my students about " happy accidents". This is when you did something that you thought was wrong, but turned out to be wonderful!

I took Rita's advice and checked out Paul Grand's Scratchy Texture on Fickr. I saved the picture and used it as a layer. It worked great! I did not use the Coffee Shop Vignette Action as she did in her tutorial. I used 2 different Coffee Shop actions. One was Honey Retro, and the other action I used was Powder Room 2. I used Honey Retro to get the effect of softened burned edges, and I used Powder Room to enhance Nate's eye's.

I am proud of myself! Not bad for a first timer!! I still have so much playing and learning to do.

I cannot thank Rita enough for opening up the world of layers, masking, and actions to me!

Thanks Rita,

One of your fans, Lori : )

New Free Action From CoffeeShop!!

2009-01-06T13:21:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Rita at Coffee Shop, we have a new FREE Action to play with!! This one is called Honey Retro. It allows you to create an edge to your photograph. You can give your picture a light or dark burn look with one click! Don't forget to swing over to Erin's site Digital Photography for Mom's if you need help installing the actions in photoshop. She breaks it down for you step by step. Erin makes it so easy, even I can do it ; ). Here is my before and after using Honey Retro...

Before

After

2 New Years Eve LO'S

2009-01-05T12:46:00.000-08:00

y last two pages in my 2008 album are done - YIPPY! My New Years Eve pages were made from a freebie I found. Check out this great kit called Rockin-New Year from Pimp Your Scrapbook. Now I am waiting for a good shutterfly coupon so that I can print my 97 page album!

wrapping up a year of LO's

2008-12-31T04:26:00.000-08:00

With all of the get togethers and holidays I fell a little behind with my LO's. Yesterday I had time to catch up and got 6 done! It helps when two of your kids are out of the house and the other is napping ; ). So what if nothing got done in my house and 3 loads of clothes are sitting on my bed waiting to be folded : /. I have complete my LO's for '08. There might be one more that includes tonight's new years eve festivities.
I have definitely set a goal for myself in my future blog posts and LO's ----SPELL CHECK. After skimming through my pages in my shutterfly album, I found MANY spelling mistakes. Now I have to go back and do some fixing. It might take a while, but it is a must. I have 97 pages in my album-yikes- that is ALOT of spell checking!
Here are my last few LO's for '08....

Photoshop Giveaway!!

2008-12-21T15:59:00.000-08:00

Erin at Digital Photography for mom's is giving away a free copy of Adobe Photoshop Elements 7/Premiere Elements 7 !!! So not only can you edit your images with the newest version of Elements, but you can make movies and slideshows with Premiere! The drawing will take place Monday, Dec. 22 and you can enter on every post Erin has made in December. So get on over there and read, learn, and win! Thanks to Rita over at Coffeeshop for sending me to Erin! You girls are great!!

Challenge on DSO

2008-12-18T18:48:00.000-08:00

Andrea is hosting her first challenge on DSO! This challenge uses a word art freebie. The word art is about friends. I created a LO using Andrea Dickinson's Heather Jean Kit. The pictures I used are of Sophie and her friend Anna. Some of us are lucky enough to have great childhood memories of when you and your best friend had matching outfits-right? Here is my LO....

LO using Holly Jolly

2008-12-18T11:04:00.000-08:00

Here are two LO's using Rachael's Holly Jolly Kit. They are both from a Santa breakfast that we attend on Sunday. Mikey and Sophie loved chatting with Santa. My I have two favorite pictures. the one where Nate (if he could talk) would say-don;t come any closer! The other fav is the one of Sophie solo with Santa. I love her little hand on his leg, and her smile. She was so happy and had lots of questions for Santa. One question she asked him was... " Where is your sleigh?". He told her it was on the roof, and that his reindeer took a walk and were eating grass.

We look forward to this every year, then kids enjoy eating their breakfast and chatting w/ Santa.

Winter kits from Rachael

2008-12-11T13:48:00.000-08:00

O.K. these kits by Rachael have some of the cutest elements I have EVER seen!! Both kits Holly Jolly and Winter Wonderland are available for purchase at pretty scrappy and devine digital. She also has a special 3 kits for $3 at pretty scrappy (holly jolly is in there!!). Go to her blog and get a freebie! Check them out.......

Rita at Coffee Shop has done it again!

2008-12-05T07:45:00.000-08:00

I did a post a little while back about Rita from Coffee Shop. She is so generous. She has made available for FREE some great actions for photo shop. Rita has improved her PowderRoom action and has created PowderRoom 2.

This action softens skin, brightens and defines the eyes, removes redness from tired/allergy eyes, and whitens teeth. It works in Photo shop and Photo shop Elements and comes with step-by-step .pdf instructions and icons for PSE.

What are you waiting for go get it!! don't forget to give Rita some love!!

creating a LO using multiple pictures

2008-12-03T08:06:00.000-08:00

I love that some scrappers can use one picture per page and make it look fabulous. Other scrappers have the nack for multiple photo's on a page. I am not sure where I fit in,but I usually have more then one photo to a page. I am not a huge fan of templates, but I do tend to use them when I have to fit lots of photos on a page. This site http://www.mandagirl.com/ has terrific templates and the best part is there are tons of free ones! I did the LO using a my variation of template #8 and Creation by Rachael's Truly Thankful Kit.

LO using Truly Thankful

2008-11-29T15:53:00.000-08:00

This is a LO I did using Creation by Rachaels Truly Thankful kit. The kit has lots of great thanksgiving elements (which I will use in LO's to follow ; ) ). But I thought it would be great to show how diverse this kit can be- here is how I used the kit....

Tip Junkie- GO SHOP!!

2008-11-24T08:25:00.000-08:00

Go visit tip junkie and SHOP!! Incase you you have been missing out on this site it focuses on inspiring women through the creative talents of other women. Being a stay at home mom of 3 and a former art teacher her site has definitely inspired me. Laurie, who created the site has lots of great ideas, great links and fun contests. Laurie designed an Mom-prenuer Shop-a-thon.
During this shop-a thon, tip junkie is challenging us all to support talented and creative women bloggers this holiday season. Laurie has links to so many creative women's sites. The links you will find are ones of hand made and personalized items. There are so many positives the Mom-prenuer Shop-a-thon not only will you be giving a one of a kind gift, but you will be supporting some very talented women.
This is shopping you can feel good about!

thanksgiving place cards

2008-11-23T14:57:00.000-08:00

last year the kids and I made placecards for thanksgiving. we decided to make it a tradition and make them again. Sophie and I took on the task. I combined two ideas I saw... here are the links

todays housewife and family fun. Tip Junkie has lots more!

Sophie hard at work
these are from Today's Housewife

these are from family fun

Mom-prenuer Shop-a-thon

2008-11-22T15:56:00.000-08:00

Today I found this amazing site called tip junkie. The site focuses on inspiring women through the creative talents of other women. Being a stay at home mom of 3 and a former art teacher her site has definitely inspired me. Laurie, who created the site has lots of great ideas, great links and fun contests. Laurie designed an Mom-prenuer Shop-a-thon.

During this shop-a thon, tip junkie is challenging us all to support talented and creative women bloggers this holiday season. Laurie has links to so many creative women's sites. The links you will find are ones of hand made and personalized items. There are so many positives the Mom-prenuer Shop-a-thon not only will you be giving a one of a kind gift, but you will be supporting some very talented women.

This is shopping you can feel good about!

Tip Junkie and holiday cards

2008-11-22T12:30:00.000-08:00

Let me first say I found the site Tip Junkie today. Amazing site, the woman who's site, Laurie, promotes creative women. There are links to so many amazing creative sites. It is right up my ally. I will visiting often. Another great thing about her site is that she has lots of give aways!

Currently there is a creative card contest, so I am giving it a shot. Feels good to get those creative juices flowing :)

This year I made my card in PSE6. I have been using this program for almost a year. I still have so much to learn. There are so many great tutorials out there, Misty Cato to name just one.

Cards can get expensive, so I found an economical card that still allowed me to add me own creativity to it. I found it at a site called Vista Print. The most economical card was the 4x8 card. They have 100 cards for around $25(that includes shipping) I downloaded the template for the card from the site, then went to work in photo shop. I used elements and papers from creations by Rachael. I wanted to still have the personal touch of our signatures on the card, so I everyone write their name on a peice of paper then I scanned it in. Here is the DeCoite family holiday card for 2008.....

Creations by Rachael is having a sale!!

2008-11-21T08:31:00.000-08:00

Rachael is truly thankful and to show you just how much, she is having a sale at Pretty Scrappy! She also has a new thanksgiving kit! Check out her kits!

Free actions for PSE

2008-11-12T16:25:00.000-08:00

I feel like I have hit the jackpot. I found a great site called Coffee Shop. Rita, the woman who's site it is, not only has free actions for PSE she has lots of tutorials on how to use them! If you are having trouble installing them she send you here to Erin's site for help. Still plating around but here is a b4 and after of sophie..Still looking for more free actions if anyone has any good sites to check out please leave them for me : )!

Rachael's New Family Matters Kit

2008-11-12T12:12:00.000-08:00

Rachael just keeps getting better and better- this is a beautiful kit with great elements and papers. The colors are warm and will definitely make a great LO. See the Preview below of the kit. They go to Pretty Scrappy and buy it! I made a LO using Family Matters -check it out!

Lay Outs for Creations by Rachael 2 Cute 2 Spook!!

2008-11-06T14:15:00.000-08:00

In an earlier post I told you about Rachael's new kit- 2 cute 2 spook. Here are some of the goodies in the kit...

Check out my 3 LO's for 2 cute to 2 spook ( click this link to go to the store and buy it!)....

The Cutest Blog on the Block

2008-11-04T04:09:00.000-08:00

I found an amazing site the other day here is the link to the Cutest Blog on the Block site. Do you like my new background??? Thanks to Ashley and Becky I was able to change it. They are the creators of the cutest blog on the block. Ashley and Becky have tapped into the personalized blog market in an affordable way, actually most of the stuff on their site is free!! They do offer services to create headers and other items for your blog. They have made it very easy ( i mean REALLY easy)for the everyday blogger to a some zing to their blog! Thanks ladies!!

Tangie Baxter Contest

2008-11-03T11:23:00.000-08:00

Tangie Baxter is hosting some post halloween fun! They are having a contest in which you have to use 5 items from a free mini kit posted on their site- easy enough right?? Here is my entry....

a 2 cute kit

2008-11-01T12:16:00.000-07:00

Rachael has created an amazing halloween kit! It has lots of great elements and papers, but best of all it is on SALE. Click the sale link and grab it!! She also has freebies and coupons on her site!

Here is 2 cute 2 spook!!

It's Monday

2008-10-20T18:10:00.000-07:00

It is Monday and the weeks seem to by flying by! Yesterday I celebrated my birthday. If I had my choice, I would just make it another regular day. Turning 36 makes 40 feel right around the corner. SCARY!!
I had a nice quiet day. Went off my diet for the day-wahoo. Went out for breakfast, took Sophie to a birthday party, and my sister and her family came over for take out. Marci and the girls baked a cake for me. Thanks girls it was delish!!
Another cazy week. Good stuff just busy. This Friday we are hosting our annual pumpkin carving party-should be fun! Just a quick post today-later

new project

2008-10-18T18:10:00.000-07:00

I have this little problem- I try to start to many projects at one time. First I tried to start updating our family web site, but I ran into some snags, so I scrapped that project. Then I was onto my next project. This one is a contest that Scholastic books is having. Basically they are asking you to document your schools book fair and you can win money for your school to buy books, and a visit from a famous author. So I am taking a stab at it. My pages are a work in progress. The team that ran the book fair, it going to help w/ the text. The clip art came from Scholastic Book and Creations by Rachael. I used papers and elements from Rachael's graduation kit, zoo kit and backyard summer kit. Thanks Rachael!! The slide show above are the from the book I will submit for the contest. Wish us luck!!

side tracked

2008-09-26T18:10:00.002-07:00

I have this little problem- I try to start to many projects at one time. First I tried to start updating our family web site, but I ran into some snags, so I scrapped that project. Then I was onto my next project. This one is a contest that Scholastic books is having. Basically they are asking you to document your schools book fair and you can win money for your school to buy books, and a visit from a famous author. So I am taking a stab at it.

My pages are a work in progress. The team that ran the book fair, it going to help w/ the text. The clip art came from Scholastic Book and Creations by Rachael. I used papers and elements from Rachael's graduation kit, zoo kit and backyard summer kit. Thanks Rachael!! The slide show above are the from the book I will submit for the contest. Wish us luck!!

test

2008-09-26T18:10:00.001-07:00

Mikey's Lego Party

2008-09-26T18:10:00.000-07:00

I created this LO using Creations By Rachael's Let's Party Kit. This is a fun kit with lots of great elements!

Mikey's party was a huge hit. The boys had a great time building their Lego racers. and the girls had a great time doing crafts. It was a small party, which I could not be happier about. You live and you learn. I think 20 kids for a party is my limit! It was perfect. Another thing is 1 1/2 hrs. is enough time to get everything is without going crazy! Check out my Lego cakes. I got the idea here. If you decide to make them, follow the tips they give you and you will have no problem!

Day 3 of blog hop- My turn!

2008-09-16T00:01:00.000-07:00

Creations by Rachael's CT is hosting a blog party in honor of both her and her son's birthdays. She has created a new kit just for this occassion called Let's Party. Today I have the honor of posting part 3 of the kit. Stop by each of the blogs listedbelow on their day to pick up the portion available. Each portion will only be available for 2 days... at the end of the week the kit will be put into Rachael's shops. Here is today's download...

Don't forget to say hi to Rachael and say thanks and happy birthday-she would love to hear from you!

Sunday -- Kelly http://jrzgrl189.blogspot.com/
Monday -- Cheri http://www.scrapinsisters.blogspot.com/
Tuesday -- Lori http://suzieqscrapper.blogspot.com/ <--------you are here!! Wednesday -- Bridget http://bridgetr321.wordpress.com/
Thursday -- Melonie http://scrapping-n-stuff.blogspot.com/
Friday -- Kay http://grandmaspixels.blogspot.com/
Saturday -- Rachael http://creationsbyrachael.blogspot.com/

Blog hop day two

2008-09-15T11:04:00.000-07:00

Hop over to Cheri's blog for part two of let's party! Tomorrow is my turn so check back for part 3. Don't forget to say happy birthday to Rachael and Alex!

Sunday -- Kelly http://jrzgrl189.blogspot.com/
Monday -- Cheri http://www.scrapinsisters.blogspot.com/

Tuesday -- Lori http://suzieqscrapper.blogspot.com/
Wednesday -- Bridget http://bridgetr321.wordpress.com/
Thursday -- Melonie http://scrapping-n-stuff.blogspot.com/
Friday -- Kay http://grandmaspixels.blogspot.com/
Saturday -- Rachael http://creationsbyrachael.blogspot.com/
Have a great day!!

Happy Birthday Blog Party Freebies

2008-09-15T10:57:00.000-07:00

Creations by Rachael's CT is hosting a blog party in honor of both her and her son's birthdays. She has created a new kit just for this occassion called Let's Party.We are all going to post a part of the kit every day over the next week. Stop by each of the blogs listed on their day to pick up the portion available. Each portion will only be available for 2 days... at the end of the week the kit will be put into Rachael's shops.Here is today's download... Happy Birthday Alex and Rachael!!!

Check out Cheri's blog tomorrow to get the next piece... feel free to stop by Rachael's blog and wish her a happy birthday!

Kelly http://jrzgrl189.blogspot.com/

Cheri http://www.scrapinsisters.blogspot.com/

Lori http://suzieqscrapper.blogspot.com/

Bridget http://bridgetr321.wordpress.com/

Melonie http://scrapping-n-stuff.blogspot.com/

Kay http://grandmaspixels.blogspot.com/

Rachael http://creationsbyrachael.blogspot.com/

I won LOTW at scraphead!!

2008-09-11T05:58:00.000-07:00

Rachael just informed me that I won layout of the week at scraphead! I used Rachaels Space Cadet kit which can be found in her grab bag. Here is my winning LO. Yippy!!

back from vacation . Need to discuss...

2008-09-09T15:59:00.001-07:00

I need to write a tragedy that happened to a young family in our town. We live in a small town ( all of about a mile). So when something happens good or bad everyone knows. On Thursday, September 4th a 36 year old man was commuting to work in Jersey City, NJ and he was stabbed and killed at a train station. The man who stabbed him was a 24 year old schizophrantic (sp?)who was off of his medication. The man who was killed leaves behind a wife and 3 children under 7. He was a little league coach, a soccer coach, a youth basketball coach, and very active in his church. It is tragic is so many ways.
I did not know the family personally, but I know the victims wife. She is a very sweet woman, who is very active in the community. Our town is pulling together to help her and her family. I think I have been so effected by this because she is a mom, the same age as me with kids the same age as mine, and one morning she kissed her husband goodbye never knowing that would be it. The death was random and unprovoked.

one last vacation-yippy

2008-08-28T11:06:00.000-07:00

Before the kiddies go back to school on September 8th we are taking one last trip. We are off to South Jersey. We will be seeing a pre season Jet's vs. Eagles game. We are taking Mikey and Sophie. It should be great. After that we head to the shore to spend time in Ventnor NJ and Wildwood NJ. I have some good trash magazines and a case of Mikes hard lemonade. If I could just get my kiddies to leave me alone for a little R & R it would be prefect. Kidding, we have lots of fun family stuff planned. Lots to scrap when we return ; ). Till then- BYE!

Rachael has a beautiful new kit!

2008-08-28T10:54:00.000-07:00

The kit is called Emmy and it is available right now at Scraphead , Pretty scrappy and DSS. Click the links to check it out. Here are some pictures of the kit:

OMG- How cute are these buttons!!!

homemade lunch notes digiscrap style

2008-08-22T15:03:00.000-07:00

Using a fantasic idea by Lilcameronsmommy (see post below) I created lunch notes for my oldest child. Mikey will be starting 1st grade and packing a lunch for the first time. I thought these notes would bring a smile to his face and I have to say they were very easy and fun to make. I used items from a kit in Rachaels grab bag. The kit is called Space Cadet and it is beyond cute!

Here are my lunch tags.

Last two Scrabble freebies

2008-08-21T19:46:00.000-07:00

I have one more paper for you. Click here for free paper.

I have the scrabble alphabet for you. I would love to see what you do with it email me the link to your work (decoite@cougar.kean.edu). Click here for free alphabet

Hurry Rachael has a terrific grab bag on sale till the 21st!

2008-08-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

THIS POST IS ON RACHAEL'S BLOG :

Last Days for Grab Bag
My first grab bag is in its final days so you better grab it now.I have marked the bag down to 2.50 for the last 3 days. This will not happen with every bag! I just feel as a new designer I overpriced a bit. If you purchased to the bag feel free to email me and I will send you a coupon to make up the difference. Remember Thursday is the last day by Friday it will be gone. To see whats inside you have to go here. I won't post the previews but I will tell you what in it.

1. Rock Kit

2. Pocket Full of Posies 2 Kit

3. Bright Fuzzy Buttons

4. Pastel Fuzzy Buttons

5. Banded Words

Available at Pretty Scrappy Scraphead and DSS

On to other things. My new bag is going up today! It is much bigger and better. You can see the reveal at Strictly Revealed or GrabBags Revealed. If you don't wanna ruin the surprise but do want a few hints then pay attention in the next week or so. First Hint: Bright

Available at Pretty Scrappy, DSS and Scraphead

Lunch notes by ....Lilcameronsmommy how cute!!!!

2008-08-20T17:20:00.000-07:00

As a child I remember my mom putting notes in my lunch. I loved it. It made me smile, and the notes were not nearly as beautiful and cute as these notes! I think Lilcameronsmommy is on to something! They are great. I am going to make some for my oldest son who is will be bringing lunch to 1st grade for the first time. I kinda feel bad for my youngest, he is 18 months and I am thinking by the time he is in 1st grade he might be lucky to have a little hand written " i love you".
Learn more and see more of Lilcameronsmommy @http://www.sweetshoppedesigns.com/inspiration/showphoto.php?photo=52299&cpage=2

Scrabble word art freebie

2008-08-20T17:03:00.000-07:00

I have another freebie for you! Here are some scrabble words. Enjoy and click here for the freebie. Don't forget to check back I have a one more scrabble paper and the entire scrabble alphabet for you!

Freebie Scrabble Paper

2008-08-19T17:09:00.000-07:00

Here is another paper for you. You can add it to the collection : )! Don't forget to check back later in the week for a scrabble alphabet freeble. Click here for the 12 x12 paper

3 Scrabbble Word Art Freebies!!

2008-08-18T15:59:00.000-07:00

Day 2 of my scrabble freebies. Here is some scrabble word art for you. Enjoy and click here for freebie. Send me love and show me what you do with it!

Scrabble freebies this week

2008-08-17T18:07:00.000-07:00

This week I am trying something new. I have made some scrabble word art, papers and a scrabble alphabet. I not a scrabble freak, but I do like how the letters look with the point value. I think they would look cool in a LO. If you use any of my freebie send me a link I would love to see your work. Here is my first give away. It is scrabble paper for a 12 x 12 LO. Enjoy and click here for the freebie!

Slideshow and review of Roxio

2008-08-17T17:58:00.000-07:00

Just playing around with a slideshow site. I figured would post incase anyone was looking on a easy site to work with. I like this one. It is Roxio. It is free, and very user friendly. I like the music selection and the choice of designs. Click the sound icon below the slide show so it does not have the red line through it and turn up the VOLUME- enjoy!

Live for today word art freebie

2008-08-14T15:04:00.001-07:00

This word art rings true in so many ways. I lost my father just over a year ago to cancer and this word art sums up how I would like to think about life. Enjoy and click here for the freebie

Hugs word art freebie

2008-08-13T16:37:00.001-07:00

Just a little freebie for ya! Click here for the word art.

Best Friend Word Art Freebie

2008-08-12T16:44:00.000-07:00

Here is another freebie for you! Enjoy and leave me some love- thanks! Click here for the freebie

Rachael has a terrific New BBQ new kit and there is a FREEBIE sampler

2008-08-12T05:36:00.000-07:00

Check out these previews and my LO. This is Summertime Grill by Creations by Rachael (go to her site for free sampler) it is so fun! It can be found ON SALE (35 % off) at Scraphead, PrettyScrappy, and DSS.

Lego Paper Freebie

2008-08-06T18:47:00.000-07:00

This is a different kind of freebie for me. I hope it helps at least one person out there. Let me know if it helped you!

I was creating a Lego theme birthday invitation for my son Mikey's 7th birthday. Saying he is into Lego's is an understatement. He lives for Lego's. For his party we ordered 10 Lego racers for he and 9 friends to put together and keep. I did a search for Lego paper and scrapbooking, I found nothing. So what is a scrapper to do ...... create her own paper.

I took a close picture of a pile of Lego's and played around with the color in PSE and there you go Lego paper. Click on the photo's for the free paper. I am giving you the original so you can play around with it is you would like. Check out my invite above!

3 freebies great for a journaling starting point

2008-08-05T13:17:00.000-07:00

I created this freebie in hope that it would lead to some great journaling. When I look at the photo's of my kids and I see their big bright eye's you wonder what are they thinking about? Do they know how much I love them? What will their future be? I would love to see your LO's if you use the word art. Click here for the freebie

Rachael's Zoo Spirit

2008-08-02T18:53:00.000-07:00

Rachael has a new kit and it is free- Click on the picture of the kit to get you to her site so you can get this fun Zoo Kit. On her site you can get information on how to get more freebies. Rachael has add on's to the Zoo Spirit kit that are 4sale at her store (scraphead and pretty scrappy)

Here is my LO using the Zoo Spirit kit by Creations By Rachael

Got the Canon Rebel and loving it!

2008-08-01T05:14:00.001-07:00

Mike and I did lots of research for the past month and the we "test drove" camera's at Best Buy. We purchased the canon rebel xsi. We loved the feel and the look of this camera. It takes terrific pictures. They are crisp and the detail is amazing. We did not purchase from Best buy we got a much better price online. These bigger SLR's can look a little scary, but basically they are made for the average consumer not the advanced photographer. This camera has about 5 settings that are pre set, such as portrait , landscape, close up and so on. I am finding that the key to getting a steady picture has to do with the way you hold the camera and the image stabilization on the lens. Check out some pictures I took the last few days.

Freebie word art for sisters

2008-07-31T17:24:00.000-07:00

This is for anyone doing a LO with sisters. I hope you like it. Click here for the freebie

word art freebie-remember moments

2008-07-30T18:14:00.000-07:00

This word art is so true- hopefully you are able to capture a great moment ! Click here for the free word art

twinkle twinkle word art freebie

2008-07-29T17:14:00.001-07:00

Here is a freebie word art for you. Those little stinkers could never really know how loved they are. This would be a good start for some journaling to tell them just what makes them so special. Click here for the freebie.

gift idea and new word art freebie

2008-07-27T06:28:00.000-07:00

Before I get to the freebie, I wanted to show you two lay outs I made. I created them for my daughter Sophie's friends birthday. They are twins. I bought them both personalized bags, but I wanted to make a little something extra. I made the LO's 5x7 inches, that way I can put them in a frame. The freebie is the word art I used in the picture with Sophie and Vanessa.

Credit: LO1-word are me : ), Mango Tango Colab kit-sunshine gang

LO2-Mango Tango Colab kit-sunshine gang, LG perspectives doodle, typewritter font cmschultz@new.rr.com

Click here for the free word art. Enjoy and send me some love or show me your work!

Dream it Word art Freebie

2008-07-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

Mikey who is 6 and Sophie who is 5 started swim lessons this summer. They did 3 lessons a week for 3 weeks. Their progress has been amazing. Mikey can go under with out holding his nose, big step. Sophie can swim down the middle from one end to the other with out stopping. She can do this 6 times. Not bad for a five year old. I am so proud of them. Tomorrow is their last swim lesson I want to bring my camera so I can make a LO using the word art below. They have definitely achieved it! Hopefully you can do something great with this word art. Send me the link to your gallery, I would love to check out your work using the my word art!Click here for the freebie.

One More Freebie...

2008-07-23T18:43:00.000-07:00

Simple but powerful. Add this to a LO and can be an intro to some great journaling. Click here to download.

What a face FREEBIE

2008-07-23T18:30:00.000-07:00

Not sure why these look blurry but here is a freebie for ya. Two for the price of one ; ). they will be clear when downloaded. Click here. Don't forget to leave some love in the C-box.

3 word art freebies

2008-07-22T16:18:00.000-07:00

I could not choose one color for the stars so you get 3 Dream a little dream word art freebies :)!Click here for freebie. Don't forget to leave me some love, I work on these things and think that nobody sees them : (.

Recovered and still married!

2008-07-22T06:19:00.000-07:00

We did it! Mike and I recovered 8 dining room chairs and we are still talking. We only fought once and we laughed alot. He is a perfectionist, but in the end it paid off. They look fantastic, I am so pleased with them! The fabric only cost $32.00 from Walmart! Hopefully we can keep them clean (at least for a little while). Check it out...

White dining room chairs-who had that bright idea??

2008-07-21T16:35:00.000-07:00

My DH Mike and I invested in a dining room set when we bought our house about 9 years ago. The set came with Chairs covered in slightly off white cushions. They came with the scotch guard stuff, but from day 1 they never seemed to stay clean. Throw 3 kids of my own, several holidays, tons of birthday parties, and 9 years worth of get together in there are you have 8 dining room chairs that could pass as a light brown. They are gross (see below). So I went out bought fabric and tonight we are on a mission to recover them after the kiddies are in bed. I will cover the chairs and show you the fabric then I will tell you what I spent. Wish me luck (hopefully DH and I are still speaking by 10pm).

Gross Chair

FancyNew Fabic

ROCK ON SOPHIE!!

2008-07-21T06:13:00.000-07:00

I love the stuff that was in Rachael's grab bag this weekend at scraphead. The grab bag is no longer available, but watch her site for details of when and where to get it. Here are some of the papers and elements that you can find in the bag.

This picture of Sophie was taken when she was 3. Love the face!

Amy Sumerall gave me a blog award!!!

2008-07-21T05:35:00.000-07:00

As some of you might know I am a huge fan of Amy Sumerall and her creative work. Her work and words inspire me. Thanks you Amy for giving me a blog award. As the award goes you are asked to pass it on to 7 other blogs/bloggers you love. I am going to have to pass on forwarding this award only because I don't want the bloggers I love to hate me. I just gave an award last week to the ladies who I would give this award to. If I gave it to the same ladies again, I think it might be the first time people that never met me would think I am annoying.

family word art freebie

2008-07-20T08:10:00.000-07:00

so true.... click here for freebie

Summer word art freebie

2008-07-17T17:07:00.000-07:00

Freebie!! Click Here

So Sophie!

2008-07-16T18:19:00.000-07:00

I used Rachael's kit for this it is part of a grab bag from strictly reveal. Shhhhh - It is being revealed tomorrow! Check Rachael's site for more details and daily freebies!

word art freebie for ya

2008-07-16T18:07:00.001-07:00

Word art freebie.. I hope you like it!! Click here.

Very Fancy... I got an award

2008-07-12T09:40:00.000-07:00

Thank you Jersey Girl for the award. I am now supposed to pass this on two 7 fellow bloggers who are worthy.

Honorable mention (don't worry you don't have to participate)!

1. http://lilbitsandberries.blogspot.com/ Amy already won, but I would have given her the award also : ). Amy always has great contest and fun little freebies. She is always upbeat and lets you know what is going on where with her kits.

2.http://creationsbyrachael.blogspot.com/ Racheal has not been chosen yet, but she is really busy w/ kits, stores and uploads. I think she might kill me if I gave her another thing to do.

3.http://bellamemorie.blogspot.com/ LJ your blog is great. Only one problem, you are crazy busy and you can't update it. Let me see newborn (and two other little ones), your grandmother :(, joe's mom, back to work full time, I am sure I missed a few things. I love your blog because you give tons of links to goodies you find.

These girls have great blogs!!

4.http://ronimasil.blogspot.com/ lisa minor, you blog is great. I love your Kits and freebies. I love that you put you LO;s up to inspire other scrappers.

5.http://www.mistycatodesigns.blogspot.com/ Misty, you have wonderful tutorials and you inspire scrappers with your LO ideas, for example your latest idea of crapping an event w/out a photo -love it!

6.http://the-dickinsons.blogspot.com/ Andrea. I love to read your "real life blog". Your posts are sincere. Your kits are terrific!

7.http://believeittoseeit.blogspot.com/ You are an AMAZING photographer!! i love how you capture real life in your photos. I

We love a good sale!!!

2008-07-08T16:38:00.000-07:00

Great news Scraphead is having a sale on Rachael's kits! They are 30% off!!! The sale is only until July 10th @ Midnight. This is the only place you can get Sandy Daze, so click here and check out this terrific offer! See below for kit previews!

New kit by Rachael check it out....

2008-07-08T06:31:00.000-07:00

Rachael has a new kit called Pocket full of posies. It is for sale here http://www.shopbusyscrappin.com/index.php#and here http://scraphead.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=25. Check out my LO below! I used the kit and Rachael's bead letters.

We are back!!

2008-07-07T16:49:00.000-07:00

We had a fantastic vacation filled with the pool, the beach ,mini golf, a baseball game, the rides on the boardwalk, ice cream, time with family, a movie, and 2 date nights for Mike and I! We spent half of the week in Wildwood, NJ and with grandma and Grandpa and the second half of the week at Mommom's house in Ventnor, NJ. Here are the Pics. I used Rachael's Sandy Daze kit it is for sale @ http://www.shopbusyscrappin.com/index.php or http://scraphead.com/shop/ . Check out this terrific kit!

whaooo-vacation

2008-06-28T19:26:00.000-07:00

We are off to Wildwood NJ for one week. We leave tomorrow. How will I make it one whole week with no digi scrapping, I am not really sure. This will be my longest separation for digi scrapping since I started in January-YIKES. That's right I have no life : /.

I will back with some beachie lo's :)- have a great week!

Mikey's Graduation

2008-06-27T12:30:00.000-07:00

Amazingly enough I did not cry that much at Mikey's graduation. I was a little sad, but I held it together pretty well. I was more sad that he was leaving moss school. He has grown leaps and bounds the past 4 years at Moss. He was in the pre-k handicapped class for 3 years for speech and developmental issues, then he was declassified and there for kindergarten. I know he is a little sad. He said "I wish all the grades were at Moss school". I told him we would go visit Campbell (the 1-4th grade school), and that his big cousin who goes there can show him around before school starts. Here are my LO it has been a busy few days.

All three LO's were done using Creations By Rachaels Graduation kit. Here is the link to her page http://creationsbyrachael.blogspot.com/

On the swings

2008-06-26T05:18:00.000-07:00

Back in the day when we were kids, my mom sent us out side to play. I think we were allowed anywhere on the block. As we all know whether you live in the best of neighborhoods or in the "hood" this just can't happen. We have to be outside at all time with the kiddies. The one safe place my kids can play with out me being right next to them is our backyard. Looking for bugs and playing on the swing set are two of their favorite things. Using Rachaels Backyard Playground kit http://creationsbyrachael.blogspot.com/, I wanted to capture the kids in their safe place.