New Hybrid Products In My Shop!
Have you seen the sale at ScrapMatters for the holiday weekend? It celebrates the July 4th weekend, Andrea (owner of ScrapMatters)’s birthday, and the launch of the new Hybrid Design Team. Whoo hoo- I’m now part of a team!!!
Anyhoo, I’ve been working all month to get some new products into the shop, so you should drop by and see them! Oh, and buy- if you send $10 on hybrid products this weekend, there’s a fun hybrid printable grab bag that will appear in your cart.
So, without any further ado, here are my new items!
And from the #4 Mystery Mix Grab Bag (with AnnaBV Designs, Designs by Tater, and Dirty Feet Designs):
I have to say, I’m particularly pleased with how the autograph book project turned out. I had no idea it would be so massive! I am so excited that my first collaborative project is with one of my digi-scrapping idols, Britt-ish Designs! It’s also an example of just how prototypes are supposed to work. I initially made this project for Natalie and Braeden for our Disney trip back in March. And then I tweeked it when I printed out a set for our friends’ trip a month later. And then I tweeked it further to make it simpler to assemble, and so you see the version you see in the shop. So. Pleased. With. It!!!!!!!
I have a few examples to share, but that’s for another post!
Oh, and pop into ScrapMatters next week, starting Monday, July 6th- I’ll be rounding out the June Daily Download with a week of printable hybrid projects!
Disney Trip Report, Day 3: EPCOT
Let’s get back to the trip report before it all leaves my brain, shall we?
Monday morning, we awoke to light rain and drizzle. Originally, I had planned the morning at Disney Studios, and the afternoon/evening at EPCOT (we had dinner reservations at Teppan Edo in Japan), however, we decided that it would be easier to dodge raindrops between the pavillions at EPCOT.
We discovered the outstanding location of the Tahiti longhouse- it was a short, but pleasant walk to the Ticket and Transportation Center, which offered a wealth of transportation options. This morning, we chose the direct monorail to EPCOT. As an added bonus, the line wasn’t long, so we asked to ride up front with the driver. Initially, they said no, but then something freed up and we were ushered up front! The trip to EPCOT is the best time to sit up front, particularly when you make the circuit around Future World before you pull into the monorail station- we have some lovely pictures!
While the sky was overcast, the rain had let up for the most part, so we proceeded with our plan as usual. Jeff took Natalie and Braeden to The Living Seas, and I headed to The Land to pick up fastpasses for Soarin’. I met everyone at the Living Seas, where we rode the clamshells, admired the fish, and took in Turtle Talk with Crush. Braeden was fascinated by the fish- I think he could have stayed there all day.
After seeing all we were going to see at The Living Seas, we moved on to Journey Into Your Imagination. We rode the ride there, and spent a fair amount of time at the Image Works. We couldn’t talk Natalie into seeing “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience,” so instead she and Braeden played in the dancing fountains outside.
The Fastpasses for Soarin’ didn’t open until 2:30pm, so we had some time to spare. We thought we would get some lunch, but Natalie either couldn’t decide or wasn’t hungry. We rode the boat ride in Mexico, and then worked our way around World Showcase. We decided to head over to The Beach Club resort and get some lunch and ice cream at Beaches and Cream. There was a wait to get a table, so we spent that wait next door in the game room. Once we got our table, we decided that lunch would be too late considering we had dinner scheduled for 5:30pm- we had ice cream for a midday snack. 
We returned to EPCOT via the boat shuttle, and we were greeted in the UK by Alice and Mary Poppins.
Back around World Showcase and back into Future World to The Land, as our window for Soarin’ had opened. Jeff rode with Natalie, while I rode Listen to the land with Braeden (he was still too short for Soarin’), followed by my turn on Soarin’ (Natalie decided that one trip over California was enough for her). We then rode Listen to the Land all together, before returning to World Showcase and Japan for dinner.
The above page is a summary of our evening in Japan: dinner at Teppan Edo with “the Cooker” (that’s what Natalie calls the chef that cooks at your table), shopping at Mitsukoshi (Natalie got a plush Hello Kitty, and I got a pearl!), and listening to the drummers.
It was a full day! After our activities in Japan, we decided to head back to our room for an early evening- oh, and watch the fireworks again…
Hopefully, it won’t be three weeks before another part of the trip report.
Grab Bag Reveal- and another freebie!
Happy Tuesday! I want to thank everyone out there you stopped by ScrapMatters this weekend and picked up my grab bag!!! I hope you enjoy everything in it!! Don’t forget to post your projects in the ScrapMatters gallery so I can leave you love. And as a bonus, I now have a designer gallery so I can find your projects easier! Yippee!!!
So, without any further ado, here are the contents of my grab bag! They are now all on sale individually at ScrapMatters:
In honor of my bag being divvied up, I’m giving away another freebie! Jeni Hopewell was kind enough to loan me her new grab bag kit “How Does Your Garden Grow?” and I used my templates to make a really cute gift bag and tag set. We’re giving them away on our blogs today- you can grab the tags here, and you can head over to Jeni’s blog to grab the bag. Aren’t they perfect for Mother’s Day?
Stay tuned this week for yet another freebie this week- just don’t know when I’m going to put it up! My muse has been working overtime, so my creative cup overfloweth! I’m perfectly happy to rent her out- I need to process the ideas I already have!
Have a great day! I plan to get back to the trip report this week- I promise!
Back on the blog train for NSD!
Good morning! It’s the first Saturday of May. While to some that means the Kentucky Derby and the Run for the Roses, for the scrapbooking community, it’s an {inter}national holiday! Happy National Scrapbook Day, everyone!!!
I’m headed off to Marysville today with my Columbus Scrappers girlies, but first, I’m part of the ScrapMatter’s blog train! If you followed the train from the beginning at Andrea’s blog, you probably just came from Virginia and Melanie3boys. You’re now in Columbus, OH- welcome! However, my idea of paradise is located in Florida.
Look back a few posts and you will see the beginnings of my trip report from my family’s most recent trip to Walt Disney World. And there you will also find my personal definition of paradise- spending time with my family in Disney. Our last trip was particularly magical- celebrating mine and Braeden’s birthdays, a surprise trip for Disney-phile Natalie, and our first stay at the Polynesian Resort. The Poly is such a beautiful resort, and it was made even more beautiful with a sprinkling of pixie dust- our garden view room turned into lagoon view! We had a cluster of palm trees in front of us, so a shimmy to the left of our 2nd floor balcony and you could view Cinderella’s Castle, and a shimmy to the right and you could see Space Mountain. Simply Heaven- especially when you could view the nightly fireworks from the comfort of your room!
The only day we had rain during our trip was Sunday, our last day. Of course, it was the day we would have our resort photo session. Nevertheless, Anthony took some wonderful pictures of us:
These pages were made with the new ScrapMatters Team Collaboration “Hawaiian Happy Hour” Isn’t it a fabulous kit? I was so honored to be invited to make pieces for it! It’s free this weekend with a $15 purchase at ScrapMatters. Additionally, you can work through the train and pick up all of the wonderful quick pages! My QP is based on the right page of this layout:
You didn’t think you’d get away from a hybrid CT member without a hybrid goodie, did you? Yup, you get a bonus printable from me- a printable mini gift bag using the template packed into my iNSD Grab Bag! Please download and enjoy! Your next stop is Miss Emilee. All Aboard!
OK, a quick plug for my grab bag!
I’m pretty pleased with it- it has a variety of goodies that can be used by anyone from pure digi scrappers to diehard paper scrappers. Some of my very talented friends at Columbus Scrappers helped me out by scrapping my grab bag goodies- look at the pretties they made!!
First off, a wonderful page by Deb, using the Right Justified Templates:
(She’s using Imperial Girl by Britt-ish Designs, also at ScrapMatters)
Then, Jana and Kelly made some cards, using the Feeling Sentimental Card templates:
(Jana used papers from Jillybean Soup, who lives right here in the Columbus area! We’re so excited to have an up and coming designer nearby!)
Kelly and Jana weren’t done. Here’s some more of their wonderful projects:
I’ll post some more awesome projects when I unpack the bag, on cinco de mayo, I believe! Thanks for stopping by!!
Disney Trip Report- Day 2, Magic Kingdom
We awoke to the sun streaming in the sliding door, and got ready for breakfast at the Kona Cafe before we headed off to the Magic Kingdom for that day. If it were just an adult trip, I’d probably start a Disney trip at EPCOT, since it’s my favorite. But Natalie and Braeden are 6 and 2, respectively, and it’s Braeden’s first trip. IMHO, it wouldn’t be right if you didn’t start at the Magic Kingdom. There’s a certain mystique about walking down Main Street USA and seeing Cinderella’s Castle for the first time.
But before any of that, we has breakfast at the Kona Cafe, found on the second floor of the GCH. I was in search of two things- a cup of french-press Kona Coffee, and that Tonga Toast. For the uninitiated, Tonga Toast is thick slides of french toast stuffed with bananas- yum! Very sweet and rich, but it’s not like I’m going to eat it everyday!
After breakfast, we walked around to the monorail platform to catch the monorail to the Magic Kingdom. The kids loved the monorail- it was a ride in and of itself. We decided to head to Adventureland first to ride Pirates of the Caribbean. This ride was closed for a makeover when we visited in 2006, so Jeff and I were looking forward to it. It was actually nice to have some variety in the soundtrack (not the Yo-Ho, Yo-Ho song the whole way through) and having Jack Sparrow popping out here and there was kind of fun.
Coming out of PotC, we found Captain Hook and Mr. Smee so we stopped for some autographs. Braeden was a little skittish, but he interacted with them a little. From there Natalie and I rode Splash Mountain and got soaked to the bone, not from the drop into Brer Rabbit’s Laughing Place, but rather from the water cannons that go off when a log goes down and target the logs going by! It was then that we discovered that late March was still a little early to get soaked at 10:30 in the morning. We got fast passes for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and walked to Liberty Square to ride the Haunted Mansion until the time window opened. Natalie then got to ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad not once, but twice, thanks to the baby swap with Braeden.
Frontierland was becoming congested, so we proceeded on into Fantasyland, riding It’s a Small World, and obtaining FPs for Peter Pan Flight for later that afternoon. We took a break for some lunch at Pinocchio’s Fest Haus, and got to sit by the windows that overlook the queue area for It’s a Small World. After lunch, we rode Snow White’s Scary Adventure, and then waited for The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
We worked our way around to Tomorrowland, getting FPs for Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, riding the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and the Carousel of Progress, and also getting Buzz Lightyear’s autograph. We also took in the Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor. By this time, the window was open for Buzz Lightyear Spin,and we rode that as well.
Dinnertime was approaching, and our first choice, Cosmic Ray’s was packed. We ended up at the Noodle Station in Tomorrowland, which is only open during peak times of the year. It’s really too bad it isn’t open more often, because the offerings were delightful! Jeff and I typically use Orange Chicken as a barometer for a Chinese restaurant, and this one got a thumbs up!
By this point, it was approaching 8pm, and the crowds were gathering for the early Spectromagic parade. We planned to catch this later in the week, so we made our way to the front gate. Natalie had such an outstanding day, that we stopped by one of the pin carts by the entrance, and let her pick out a new pin for her lanyard- she chose Ariel in her ballgown. Then we caught the resort monorail back to Tahiti. We got “home” with plenty of time to change for bed, and watch the fireworks from our balcony.
Here’s a summary of the day in a page:
Monday is EPCOT day! Yippee!!
One more post for tonight- I need your help!
March for Babies is 16 days away…
ACK!
I have done no fundraising whatsoever. All of the spare change that goes in the duck bank was allocated to Disney spending money! I’m so behind!
Around this time of year, I’m usually on the Columbus Scrappers’ board rallying the troops. Getting those last minute sponsors so all of our team members get to $125 to earn their March for Babies t-shirt. It’s the plea to prevent shirtless women!
Please don’t let me get arrested for Public Indecency… LOL! Please sponsor me!!! My March of Dimes page is here:
http://www.marchforbabies.org/personal_page.asp?w=31021499&u=columbusscrappers
I’m going to throw out an incentive for my digi-scrapping buddies. I am a fledgling Apprentice Designer at ScrapMatters (where I am also on the Hybrid Creative Team- I did today’s ReNEWit feature- go to the SM blog for April 9th to see it!!!), and I’m going to be releasing a Grab Bag for National Scrapbook Day coming up. I’m going to pack it will all kinds of hybrid goodness!
Hey, you can have it FOR FREE if you make a donation to my March for Babies ticker! Leave a comment in the sponsor section, and I’ll email you a coupon code for my NSD Grab Bag! I love the March of Dimes site- it makes it so easy for you to donate. You can donate by a check you can mail to me (my addy comes to you when you fill out the form), or by credit card or paypal. Even better, March of Dimes sends you an email you can use as a receipt for your taxes. Even even better, your money goes right to the MoD if you do cc or paypal- I don’t touch a penny of it! It’s not that I would ever personally misappropriate funds, but there are people out there who do. So sad that I need to account for that.
I am so lucky that I have healthy kids, but I’ve walked through the NICU at Children’s. It’s a great facility, but it’s quiet and scary, so I wouldn’t wish having to be there on anyone. That’s why I’ve walked for the March of Dimes for 6 years. They wiped out polio- so I have no doubt that they can wipe out prematurity, too.
I’m back!
Miss me?
I’m back after taking a hiatus from blogging- I was never good at keeping a diary, so I’m not sure why a blog would be any exception. Like with my lab notebook, once technology comes up with the direct neural link that feeds my thoughts right into the computer, it’s a sporatic thing.
However, there should be steady stream of posts for a while, at least I hope. We have a Disney Trip to report! Jeff and I took advantage of the amazing Buy 4, Get 3 Free deal at Disney, and we took a family vacation over Spring Break! We made full use of the promotion and spent our first stay at the Polynesian! Needless to say, I was a little excited! However, we also knew that once Natalie found out, that she would be excited, too, possibly to the point that it would distract her from other things, so we decided to keep it a secret. THAT was possibly one of the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
We finally told her on the 20th, the evening before we left. We had a 7:05am flight to Orlando, which meant getting up incredibly early. Jeff and I decided that it would be most efficient to send the kids to bed in sweats, so we only had to get them up long enough to get them in the car. Since that’s a change to routine, we figured we should have a really good reason!
Natalie was surprisingly calm when we told her we were going on vacation to Disney the next morning.
How disappointing.
However, the closer we got to bedtime, but more excited she got! I’m not sure how we got her to bed.
Four thirty in the morning comes awfully early, but we managed to get up with the alarm, get dressed, and get Natalie and Braeden up and into the car. We thought they might have been a little sleepy, but no, they were awake and ready to go. The early hour was worth it, and while the Columbus Airport was busy for a Saturday morning, we got through check-in and security in a reasonable amount of time, and took off on time.
Natalie and Braeden we so well behaved on the plane! Natalie had a new Littlest Pet Shop game to keep her busy, and I brought new coloring books for both of them.
As I completely buy into Disney’s plan to keep you on property, of course we took advantage of the Magical Express service. The thought of a) not handling my luggage at the airport, and b) not having to worry about renting a car, is so worth it! There was essentially no line at the DME counter, so we were checked-in in less than 10 minutes, and in the queue for our bus.
Truth be told, I didn’t pay to much attention to time- this was the easy-going Disney vacation!
We boarded the bus, and soaked in the lovely, sunny Florida morning. The bus stopped at the Wilderness Lodge and the Comtemporary Resort before we pulled up to the Poly. We pulled in before 11am- yippee!!
First Official Picture! The Lobby of the Great Ceremonial House, Polynesian Resort
Are you ready for some magic?
I sent Jeff to check us in, and I sat in the lobby with Natalie and Braeden, in the corner where the TV is set up running classic Mickey Mouse cartoons and there’s a kiddie table with coloring pages and crayons. (Note for next time- arrive in the morning again!!! Sure, getting up is a killer, but it was so easy to check in everywhere- no lines!!) Jeff comes back a little bit later- we’re going to Tahiti! The Tahiti longhouse, that is…
Tahiti is a little bit of a walk from the Great Ceremonial House, but unless you are dog-tired and grumpy, it is a pleasant walk. It’s on the beach, and about an equal walk to the Ticket and Transportation Center, which turned out to be great for us- the TTC made it easy to get anywhere, by monorail, ferry boat, or bus (Jeff isn’t easy to impress, but he LOVED that). Whoo hoo- being close to the beach meant it would be even easier to get to it to watch the Electrical Water Pagent and the Wishes fireworks over the Magic Kingdom. When I made the reservation, I reserved a garden view room, and I made a request for a room with a balcony (easier to keep Braeden contained). Otherwise, I figured I’d just let the pixie dust fall where it may. So, I was expecting a view like this
The lovely landscaping of the Poly
or this
More lovely gardens...
But no, that wasn’t to be. We got this instead
View from Tahiti 2019
Yup, that’s the view. To the left of that palm tree is Cinderella’s Castle, and to the right is Space Mountain…
Talk about pixie dust- we got upgraded to Lagoon View! I think it’s technically not Theme Park View because of that palm tree. If you shimmied to the left side of the balcony, you had a clear view of the Castle. If you shimmied to the right of the balcony, you got Space Mountain. You know what? I’m not complaining! Sentimental Disney-phile that I am, I almost broke down and cried when I drew back the curtain to the balcony. That is Magic, pure and simple.
Here’s a view with the zoom lens
Cinderella's Castle is easier to see when you use the zoom
Oh, and here are those MK fireworks
Wishes Fireworks
Sorry for the blurry pic- I didn’t realize I would need to pack the tripod! This could not have worked out more perfectly for us. Natalie likes the pretty colors and patterns of fireworks, but she really doesn’t like the booming. This way, we could sit in our room every night and enjoy the fireworks with much reduced noise. And, as an added bonus, once they were done, we could tuck the kids into bed and call it a night- no commute out of the park to get “home.”
So, I pulled myself together, and we changed into swimsuits, and back to GCH (Great Ceremonial House) to use the pool and grab some lunch. It was a little cooler than I expected- it was OK for swimming, but it might have been just a little better if it were 5 degrees warmer. It was fine if you were in the water, but brrrr if you got out to use the water slide! I spent most of the time in the water up to my neck- ah! Natalie didn’t care nearly as much- she loved that water slide. We swam until Braeden’s teeth were chattering, dried off, and headed to Captain Cook’s for lunch. After lunch, Jeff stayed with Braeden to get him to take a nap, and I took Natalie back to the pool for a while longer.
We had dinner reservations for Chef Mickey’s at the Contemporary. Jeff and Braeden met us at the GCH after their nap, and we took the resort monorail around the loop: first to the Grand Floridian Resort, then the Magic Kingdom, and then the Contemporary.
I’ll share more pictures later once they make it into page, but I did want to share my favorite
Pictures with our host
The look of wonder and adoration on Braeden’s face is just priceless. That made the trip worth it right there.
For the most part, Braeden was OK with the characters. He was a little startled if they approached to quickly, but he never panicked. Natalie, well, she loved the characters during her first trip, so for her it was like seeing old friends.
After dinner, we headed back to our room, unpacked our luggage and watched the fireworks over the Magic Kingdom from the balcony. It’s Magic Kingdom Day tomorrow!
Stay tuned- I’ll work through the trip right here on the blog! I promise I’ll post more frequently than usual!
EEEK!! Four weeks?
So, I checked a friend’s blog today, and she has my blog listed, with its last revision- 4 weeks ago???? EEEK!!
Ok, I’ve been derelict!
But guess what? I have freebie at this end of this, so hang tight!
I spent a bulk of the month working on a Columbus Scrappers challenge: Page a Day in January. This was a month long challenge that occurred over at Big Picture Scrapbooking last January- so bummed they didn’t renew it! But no matter, we had a small dedicated group give it their best shot! I dropped off about half way through the month, but I picked it back up towards the end and managed to get about 17 pages scrapped, plus a bunch of valentines! This is a considerable achievement for me, seeing as some years it was a struggle to get 50 pages done!
Here are some of the pages I completed:
Last week, the United States Figure Skating Championships was held in Cleveland. Natalie and I drove up for the weekend, and enjoyed the four Senior finals. My camera got a workout- I came home with 490 photos! Natalie was a champ- she held out for 12 hours at Quicken Loans Arena on Saturday! The power of stuffed animals and ice cream is amazing! However, it looks like I’ll be on my own in the skating fanaticism department. When asked if she wanted to come with me if another Nations came to town nearby, she replied, “No, Mommy, you can go by yourself. I’ll stay home with Daddy and Braeden.” Oh well, I had to try. Don’t let her fool you- she fell in love with Alissa Czisny (Ladies Champion), and had a blast getting autographs from the skaters.
One of my favorite photos:
Here we were getting autographs from the senior dance medalists, and she was showing her loose tooth to Todd Gilles. You know the caption: “Yes, you just may have won a medal at Nations, BUT I HAVE A LOOSE TOOTH!!” Bless their hearts, the skaters were really sweet- they we all excited for her.
That tooth dropped out this morning, BTW. Tooth Fairy is making a visit tonight!
Here are the couple of Nationals pages I managed to crank out:
A little enabling here, the aqua and brown papers I used for Brooke and Ben’s page came from Sugarplum Paperie’s new kit, Strawberry au Lait. I’m particularly fond of Nicole’s latest efforts, since I helped her with it!!! I fed her color ideas
OK, one more pic from Cleveland:
Ahhhhhhh!!!!! It’s SkateGod for Life!!!! Wheeeeee!
Here’s the other goodie I was working on this month- my new kit at Scrap Matters!! I’m no longer a one hit wonder, my kit count is now up to two!
I did the hybrid blog post for Scrap Matters on the 22nd, so head over there to see the examples I made with this template set! Oh, and there’s another freebie there, too!
So you’ve waited this whole time… I have an extra template to add onto my Hybrid Valentine Templates:
So, that’s our month! Hopefully, February will be more blog friendly!
Catch you later!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Looks like the best I’ll be able to do is sign the salutation this year. I’m battling my second sore throat in a week, and this one is a doozy! I’d be fine as long as I didn’t have to swallow, or talk, or eat. I spent the afternoon at Urgent Care, and I was sent home with an antibiotic, some prednisone for my swollen glands, and a nifty painkiller. Cross your fingers that this stuff kicks in post haste. What a bummer way to ring in the new year, eh?
OK, enough with the pity party…
We had a wonderful Christmas! Santa was very good to all of us! We managed to keep Natalie upstairs until 8am, and then we let her loose on her stocking. Braeden also joined in the festivities this year- ripping wrapping paper was tons of fun! He’s in that phase now, however, that he wanted to play with the gift he had just opened, so that kind of slowed things down a little (either that or the overkill on the fasteners in the packaging!)
A couple quick pics to tide you over until I can get them into pages (and boy, will I get them into pages! Between ScrapMatters and Sugarplum Paperie, I have enough Christmas kits to hold me for YEARS- way too many cute kits!!)
And now, a couple of my latest digital creations! Nicole at Sugarplum Paperie designed some great kits this month!
Isn’t this precious? We had a dusting of snow a couple of weeks ago, and I called him over to look at it out the window. Yes, I admit it!!! I staged the shot just for the picture!!! But, it’s not like I positioned his hands or anything… This was using a bunch of Sugarplum Goodies- the Holiday paper pack from her December Grab Bag (now unpacked and in her store both on her site and The DigiChick), the ribbon and snowflakes from the Holiday Glitz pack, the border and swirlie from the Winter Wonderland 2 freebie, the Clear White Alpha, and the tag and button can from Plumberry Teacakes.
I actually squealed when Nicole showed us the previews for this kit- it’s called “First Kiss of Spring” and it’s available starting New Year’s Day. Did I mention it’s a collaboration with Studio Flergs???? I didn’t need to know anymore before I fell in love (yup, I’m sucking up). The glitter swirl is the only embellishment not included in the kit (the swirl is part of a mini kit called The Sweetest Thing, part of the December Grab Bag goodies). This is a page I did for the ScrapMatters Speed Scrap hosted by Melanie last night.
I hosted a Saturday Special challenge at SM this past Saturday. I suggested creating a “Year in Review” page, and this was my take on it I used the Winter Shimmer kit by Haynay Designs and Happy Scrap Girl, the kit that was included in the December edition of the ScrapMatters newsletter. The 2008 numbers came from the November Daily Download, Espresso Yourself.
Finally, here’s this year’s Christmas card. I still have some hope of mailing these out, so watch your mailbox! This was made using the Comfort and Joy Collaboration kit found at Scrap Matters- I LOVE the rich jewel tones in this kit!
Well, that’s about it from me! Have a great New Year, everyone!!!!
