Another Announcement!!!

I am so thrilled to say that I have been asked to be on the Color Me Daisy inaugural Design Team! Whoo hoo!! I am going to be a Daisy Girl! I am very excited for this opportunity and look forward to working with an amazing group of ladies! Color Me Daisy is in its beginning stages and it is very exciting to see it bloom and come together. Michelle says that the website is nearing completion and she is waiting on one last shipment for the August debut!! You can check out their new website here-ColorMeDaisy.

Its a Happy Day!!!

The sun is shining and the birds are chirping, it definitely is a happy day!!

I hope everyone had a fantastic 4th. Mine was different than usual. My kids were all gone in different directions, so we had a very quiet weekend. We had a barbecue with some friends and then Heidi and Ben came home later in the evening and were able to shoot off some spectacular fireworks together. Wouldn't you know, I don't have any photos to show for it. Gotta keep my camera handy at all times!!

This week will be a quiet one. My sweet hubby will be off on Saturday to go to Washington with the youth group for a mission trip. Heidi will be going to Washington to visit with friends. That means I have laundry to catch up on so they can pack. Ben and I will be home alone this weekend and I am sure we will find a movie or two to go to. Today I have to clean my house. It is in dire need of attention. I also have to weed and some scrapping to do. Ok, so much for the quiet day... I better get busy!!

Hopefully, I will have some exciting news to share soon. I can't wait to spill the beans!!
Until then, have a great day!!
Kristii

Exciting News!!!!

I have been asked to be a part of the So Sketchy Design Team!! I am so thrilled to be given this opportunity and look forward to designing with Allison 's sketches!! If you aren't familiar with her work, check out the So Sketchy Blog. Her sketches are awesome and I know you will be totally inspired by them!! I look so forward to getting to know Allison and the rest of the talented design team!

Finally....

I received the package I have been waiting for! Yay!! It has taken a week and a half, but it has finally arrived. I think our mail is up and working again. You do not realize how personal your mail is until it starts being sent elsewhere. My son's drivers license, bank statements, and my daughter's paycheck were all lost in the mail. Yikes, those are important things! Thank you to the mail carriers who deliver our mail safely. I will not take you for granted any longer!


Now I can start on my DT work for Little Red Scrapbook!! The manufacturer for this month is my beloved October Afternoon. As you can see from earlier posts, I love OA!! Working with this kit will be a treat!!!



I finished a layout for Sheila at Keepsakes by Design using Kimberly Poloson Cabana Blooms papers. These papers are very rich and fallsy and of course I just had to cut them up.

My inspiration came from a layout entitled Day Trip by Maggie Holmes. I loved what she did with the hambly and the scalloped border. Thanks for the inspiration!!

Wishing you a bright and sunny day! I am off to play with my LRS kit!!

Kristii

Happy July!

Wow! Its already July first. The time is just flying and I am still not sure where June went. The days have been beautiful here. I so love the summertime!! Well, there is one exception to that rule. My allergies totally blew up yesterday. I ended up having to go to bed they were so bad. I keep hoping I will outgrow them, but every year they insist on coming back. My sweetie went out and bought me some non-drowsy medicine, so today should be a better day!!

It should be about 85 degrees with blue skies, I predict a fantastic day!!

My son made it back from his mission trip and I could swear he grew another inch or two. He is growing up right before my eyes. I think he learned a lot. I have enjoyed the stories he has had to tell! It is so good to have him back home. He got right to it yesterday and dug up some Yarrow that had been overtaken by grass for me. I am a lucky mom to have such a great kid!!

I finished another layout about Matt and Beth. It is so good to see the smiles on their faces. Even though I miss them, I know they are doing very well and that does my heart good!
I am so very proud of you!! I just love seeing you both so happy!! It makes me smile!!

Here is a quote for today,

Man’s extremity is God’s opportunity. Unshakable faith is faith that has been shaken. - Unknown

Have a great day,

Kristii

Scrapping the Music #42

I finally finished the challenge for ScrappingtheMusic this week. It seems that all my entries so far have featured pages from Beth and Matt's wedding. That is very good because I need to get her album finished. The photographer captured some good random photos and this one is no exception. Ed had already given her away and we were listening to the vows. Ed is full of pride and I love that smile on his face. For a moment there, I was remembering when she was a baby and wondering how she grew up so fast.

The song that was chosen this week was the perfect song to describe this moment!

Thanks for looking and have a great Sunday!!

Is it Friday already?

Wow, this week has flown by!! I just can't believe its Friday!!
Not only that, but it is the last Friday of June. How can that be?
I am going to have to slow down some and enjoy the summer.
I think I need grab a glass of lemonade and go lounge out in my
backyard today. I want to hear the birds chirp and feel the warm
rays of the sun. Sounds heavenly!

Speaking about the week flying by, I want to take a moment to thank those of you who attended my mini album class on Wednesday! I had a blast with all of you! You ladies rock!! I hope you bring your finished books into the store and show them off!! I hope you have fun embellishing them and making a precious keepsake for your family to enjoy for years to come!!

Ed and I are going to go and see Get Smart this weekend. I went to see it with Heidi this week and I truly enjoyed it! Get Smart was one of my favorite childhood shows and the big screen version did not disappoint. I think it will be one of my favorites for years to come.

After taking a day off, I did one last layout for the week. I just love this picture of Bethany. She is/was such a fashion guru! Of course I always had to make bows to match (poor girl), but she was always one of the best dressed girls in town!! She still is today, but you have to add purses and shoes into the mix. Bethany you are going to have to come home to help me pick out my fall wardrobe! lol!!! Love you girl!!




I do have to wish Studio Calico a very Happy Birthday!! They have provided some fantastic kits over the past year and I know that the year to come is going to be awesome!!
Thank you SC for all your creative genious and caring atmosphere!! May you enjoy continued success in the year to come!! SC rocks!!! See you at the reveal (whoo hoo)!

Thanks for looking and I hope you have a fantastic weekend!!

Kristii

It's Wednesday

That means that today is class day and I have some last minute preparations so this post will be short and sweet!

I finished a layout this morning called Best Friends. It celebrates the amazing relationship my girls share with each other. You know, when your kids are toddlers, you wonder if the fighting will ever end. As the years go by, gradually you see a friendhip blossom and bloom. When they become adults, it is a most beautiful thing for a mom could ever see. I treasure the fact that my girls are best friends. They are separated by many miles, but their hearts are always together! I love you girls!!!

I have to check with the post office today and make sure my packages are on their way back to me. I hope this will be resolved soon!! Come on USPS!!!

Here is a good quote for today:

To be happy, do not add to your possessions, but subtract from your desires. ~anonymous

Have a great day!!

Kristii

Girl's Day Out!!!

Whoo hoo!! Heidi and I are going to go shopping and take in a movie this afternoon! I am looking forward to spending some time with her today. Summer break is going by so quickly and before I know it, she will be going back to school. I am not sure which movie we will go see, but there are several out that would be fun to watch.

Before we go, I have issues with the post office that I need to take care of.

My daughter, who lived with us for a month, filled out a change of address form when we moved them to Seattle. No big deal, right? Wrong! The mailcarrier assumed that meant the whole household would be moving to Seattle even though she put in a change of address for herself- individual, and for her and her husband (different last name)-Family. All of my mail was being forwarded to her in Seattle. So I go in to the post office last Wednesday to correct the error, and assume everything would be taken care of. I get a letter from my bank requesting a change of address form be filled out. What??? So I clear that up...today I checked the status of a package that had been sent on Saturday and it is labled-forwarded. The package was sent out after I went in to correct their mistake. There should have been no problem. I am going to have to go in once again and make sure they have it right and see if they will forward my packages...(yes packages-Bethany sent my dh a Father's Day Present that was forwarded back to her) without being charged a second time for postage! I hope this will all get resolved soon! It is so frustrating!

On a lighter note, I am so excited! I have lost 5 pounds since school let out!! Yay! I have to keep it up!! I am not a spring chicken any more and I have to work hard to get myself in shape!!

I have been working on a class I will be teaching tomorrow night. It is a mini called, The Story of Me. I can't wait, I haven't taught any classes for a while! Such a fun little project with lots of goodies inside! Can't wait to see you all tomorrow night!!

Since I am preparing for this class, I haven't done a new page, but I realized I have an older page that I haven't posted yet. This was made for the book club at Keepsakes by Design. We used Nic Howard's book, That's life. I love Nic's work and I thoroughly enjoyed making this layout! Thanks for the inspiration!

I used the Studio Calico December kit for this one. Studio Calico kits totally rock!!

Here's my quote for the day:

A smile is a curve that sets everything straight. ~Anonymous

Hope you have a great day!

kristii

The weekend was fantabulous!!

I hope you all had a great weekend too! We went to see Kung Fu Panda and The Hulk. Loved both movies!! If you haven't had a chance to see them, I recommend them both! We also did a little yard work and I was able to do a little scrapping. I didn't get Eddy to the river or lake yet, so I am going to have to make that a priority for next weekend. The rivers are really high and muddy here yet, so hopefully next week will be better!

I didn't get any reading done either. Heidi stole my book, lol, so I am going to have to choose another one until she is done. The Book Thief is really good, so I can't wait until she finishes it. Don't know what I will start on, probably A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray. I am going to read this book because it is popular in our High School Library and I like to keep up on what the kids are reading. I love to be able to recommend books and know what I am talking about.

We got a call from Benny last night, and it sounds like the Mission trip is going well. They went white water rafting yesterday and will start working at the Reservation today. I miss him!!

I just wanted to post the layout I just finished. I wanted to do a fun happy one because all of my layouts lately have been serious and a little brooding. I have to get out of this funk that I am in! The best way to accomplish this is to scrap with bright, happy colors and boy did I scrap with bright, happy colors! Thanks for looking!

The journaling says: Soakin up the sun at Venice Beach, CA 1990. It is so hard to believe that this picture is 18 years old. Yikes! I am so thankful for scanners. That poor picture was a 3x5. I am so glad to be able to manipulate photos and make them usable. I was terrible at taking pictures back then! This picture is so cute of Beth and Heidi. They were 3 1/2 and 18 months old. Bethany was quite a little mama back then and Heidi was very patient. It is even more amazing to see what good friends they are now-18 years later!

Have a great Monday,

Kristii

Its the weekend!!

It should be a very relaxing weekend! Benny is leaving to go on a Mission Trip to Yakima, Washington tomorrow. It should be a fantastic experience for him! We are going to do yard work and hopefully Ed and I can go fishing and spend some time up at the lake. I am looking forward to the peace and quiet and reading the book I started last month-The Book Thief. It is very interesting. The book is narrated by "Death", which is a very strange concept. It has been very good thus far.


I did a new layout yesterday with the new October Afternoon line. I love that line soooo much! It is so bright and colorful! I found some old pictures of Beth and I taken in 1986. Wow, where has the time gone??? I don't feel like I have aged that much, but when you look at the pictures, there has been significant sagging taking place over the years! When I got to thinking about it, Bethany is now the same age now (22) as I was in the pictures. How weird is that? I have to chuckle....I just don't feel that old! Oh well, time does take its toll and there is nothing you can do about it....where is that plastic surgeon's number...lol. I just hope to age gracefully, let nature take its course and work hard at taking care of myself! I am not a Spring Chicken any more! Any way, after all that rambling on, here is the layout:

Thanks for looking! I hope you keep your eyes on the Son, and have a great weekend!!

kristii

A Park with a View

We took another trip into Yellowstone National Park with Heidi's boyfriend, Travis. Believe it or not, Travis has been to the Park before, but he didn't really see any animals-Just a few elk at the Madison junction. We had to remedy that situation for sure. He was in for a treat!!

We saw so many animals including baby elk, baby buffalo, an eagle, a heron, pelicans, moose, a marmot, and 4 bears and one cub. Wow! What a day!! Here are some pictures highlighting our trip:

Heidi and Travis at the entrance gate.

Baby Buffalo-soooo cute!

Heidi and Travis at Yellowstone Lake.

There's a moose somewhere in those willows!!

A Great Blue Heron

Heidi and Travis clowing around.

The first black bear we saw.

This was the 4th bear and we had a great time watching him. He was off the beaten path and there weren't a lot of other sightseers. He was very busy eating the plentiful grass. Totally awesome!

It was an awesome day-we couldn't have asked for more!!

Have a great day,

kristii

Scrapping the Music #41

I just have to say Aleida Franklin, you rock!! When I saw Aleida's layout for this challenge, it totally inspired me and I knew I had to do a layout of Ed and Bethany dancing on her wedding day, (sniff, sniff). The song Cinderella has such a powerful story behind it and I am still feeling quite blue that my sweet Bethany Marie moved away, so this whole project brings tears to my eyes.
Lyrics: Oh I will dance with Cinderella I don't wanna miss even one song, Cuz all to soon the clock will strike midnight And she'll be gone-Steven Curtis Chapman


I did shed a couple of tears when I set the clock on the layout at midnight. Oh my they grow up fast. If you have sons and daughters, enjoy every minute-They grow up in a flash!!

If you are interested in the challenge or more info on the Cinderella song, visit the Scrapping the Music blog.

Have a great day!

Kristii

Scripture Challenge #24

Oh my goodness, I can't believe it is week 24! It feels so good to be getting back in the swing of things now that school is over!! I finished a quick layout for the Scripture Challenge. I want Heidi to remember it is ok to question but, we must believe and not doubt. Patter Cross had this quote on her blog:

"A devotional in my Zondervan Mom’s Devotional Bible says, “Doubts are different from unbelief. To doubt is not to reject. A doubt is an uncertainty of belief, a suspension of judgment. Doubt is a temporary attitude of questioning whereas unbelief is a prolonged attitude that rejects something or views it as impossible. Don’t be afraid to doubt. Don’t be afraid to question. God is big enough and powerful enough to handle our doubts and answer our questions.”

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

kristii

Finally...

I am going to make myself write this post. I miss my kids so much and I think I just wanted to wait a while before I wrote about taking them to Seattle. The moving caravan included Matt and Beth, Ed and I, and Matt's parents and little brother. We really had a great time together, but it was a very long drive to Seattle! Taking them to Seattle was a very good thing! We were able to see their apartment, meet their apartment manager and see the area that they will call home. I was very comforted by the fact that they seem to live in a safe community. Their apartment has a lot of character and the grounds are just beautiful! They have an awesome clubhouse at their apartment complex that includes an indoor pool, basketball court, racquetball court, bigscreen tv, full gym and tanning bed. Wow!!

Here is a picture of their building. The bottom window is their living room.

Here are Bethany and Matt carrying in boxes. They look so happy!!

Here is a picture of Beth by their fireplace. Very cozy!!

Here is the other side of the living room. Poor kids had a lot of work ahead of them, but I think that they are almost all unpacked now!

Of course, we did a little sight seeing! We took the ferry over to Seattle and explored Pike Market and we also took in the Underground tour! Very interesting! Here are both families in Poulsbo. Very fun town!

We had a great time even though the Mom's were tremendously emotional! It was so hard to leave, but we are planning on heading back to Seattle in August. Can't wait!

Finally, I did a layout for therapy (which always helps those emotional times!). I decided to enter the Last Scrapper Standing for Create My Keepsake. I know I don't have a prayer, but it was fun and I am going to challenge myself all summer. I want to become a better scrapper and what better way to do that? Any way here is my take on Challenge #1-scrap your weakness.

My kids are my greatest weakness. I love them with all of my heart and I am at the stage in life where I have to let them go. {sob!} One of the arrows in the layout is pointing to the Uhaul sign that says: Uhaul-makes moving easier...journaling states: This isn't necessarily true from a Mother's perspective...ha, ha, ha. 2nd journaling spot states: Being a mom was all I ever wanted to be! I have enjoyed every moment, but this has been the most difficult yet rewarding part~the letting go!

With a tear in my eye, I wish you a very happy day!!

kristii

Little Red Scrapbook June Kit Reveal

This month's kit at Little Red Scrapbook was so fun to work with and the DT cooked up a surprise for Maegan! As you may know, Maegan just had a baby not long ago and we used the June kit to make a mini album to welcome baby Crew. The album pages turned out fantastic!!! Way to Go ladies! The DT at LRS rocks!!

Here are my designs for June:

Here are a couple of pages I made for the mini album:

BTW...next month's kit is going to be awesome! You will want to reserve yours today!!

kristii

June Little Red Scrapbook Teaser!!

I had so much fun with the June Little Red Scrapbook kit, I thought it would be fun to post some teasers of my designs for the month. Maegan did post that June kits are in the mail....so I hope you were able to order yours before they sold out...

Just to whet your appetite....

I can't wait to see what you create with this awesome kit!!!

kristii

We are off to Seattle

Yesterday was the last day of school, Hooray!! I am sooooo happy!! The only sad moment was when I was driving to school, I passed a moving van. I burst into tears right on the spot. This is going to be such an emotional weekend for me. I have a ton of differing emotions flooding throught me! I am so proud, but so sad and everything in between!

So we are off-taking Matt and Beth on their new adventure together. They will do great in Seattle I do believe. Matt has a great job and he and Bethany make new friends with ease. I think the hardest part will be the drive home. I am so excited to see their apartment and the city where they will now call home. That will be fun. My camera is ready to take a bazillion pictures so that I can scrap for therapy when we get home.

Here are a couple of my favorite layouts of my sweet daughter:

With a tear in my eye I have to say I am so proud of you girl! I love you!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Wow, It's Thursday already!

I can't believe how the time has flown! Tomorrow is the last day of school and then I will be on Summer Break!! Whoo hoo!! Doing a happy dance that is for sure!!

The down side is that Saturday we are moving our kids. I am soooo sad! I am going to miss them soooo much!! We have enjoyed spending time with them and I don't know what I am going to do not being able to see them every week. I love you Beth and Matt!!!

I have been trying to do some more scrapping this week and I have been having a blast! I have been using up my Studio Calico May kit and boy is it scrumptious.

I am also working on DT projects for Little Red Scrapbook and boy is the kit awesome...here are some pictures of the June kit!

Weekend Crop News!!!

2 Scrappy Chix Designs is having a crop this weekend. Saturday from 9-4 and Sunday from 8-12 CST. Sounds like fun!! Wish I was not going to be on the road! I would love to get more scrapping done!!

Have a great evening!!

kristii

A most amazing weekend!!!

Last weekend we took a drive into Yellowstone National Park and it was totally amazing. You could certainly tell it was Spring! There were babies galore! The little buffalo babies were so cute! It is hard to believe they grow to be so big and beastly!

We also saw a grizzly bear sow and her cub, but of course we were not close enough to take pictures. Oh well, better to be safe than sorry!! The most magnificent sight of the day however, belongs to a baby elk who we happened upon that was less than an hour old. I am so amazed that its mama decided to birth her baby right by the side of the road. I will never forget how wobbly he was when he tried to stand for the first time. So cute!! His Mama was so tender with him, it almost brought tears to my eyes. I think I took at least 100 photos, but they will never do that amazing sight justice. I will be forever blessed to see such an amazing moment!!

We drove around the bottom half of the Park. I was amazed at the amount of snow and ice that have not yet melted. It made for beautiful pictures though. Another treat for the senses was the Yellowstone River. It was full of ice and as the ice ran under Fishing Bridge, the sounds were amazing. It sounded like thousands of crystals clinking and tinkling together. Totally amazing! On the last leg of our journey we went around to Gibbon Falls. No snow there, but the scene was gorgeous!

I feel so blessed to live in Southwestern Montana. Such an amazing and beautiful place! I hope you all can experience it some time in your lives!!

I hope you have a fantastic week!!

kristii