Valentine Pretties

Not much happening today. Just working on some Valentines to hang on my Valentine tree. Need to start packing up soon to head to Archiver's to crop with my BFF Tracy, Tracy's Mom, Jackie, and a couple friends, Stephanie and Kim. It's Kim's Birthday today!! Happy Birthday Kim!! Tomorrow, we have a basketball game, then home to make some Valentine Cupcakes with the kids, and hopefully a flourless heart-shaped chocolate cake.

Just found out I have another LO getting published in Scrapbook Trends July 09 magazine. Doing my happy dance here!!

Leaving you now with a few pictures of the Valentine ornaments I have been working on.

In My World...

Well, in my world, ponies don't eat butterflies and poop rainbows, as they do in Horton Hears a Who!! My kids love this movie, and especially love the scene in which the characters describe their perfect world!! I keep meaning to scrap and journal a layout about this. Each of my children has a description of their perfect world. I'd like to tell you they describe their worlds to be ones in which there is no hunger or poverty and of course world peace exists, however, the worlds they describe seem to be more like the ones Horton's friends do - the ones with rainbow pooping ponies and such.

In any case, my world is pretty OK for now. I recently found out I would be having a layout published in Scrapbook Trends magazine in June this year. This finally ends my long dry spell, as I have been submitting on a fairly regular basis, but have not had anything picked up in awhile. It will be my first time in Scrapbook Trends magazine and I am pretty excited, as is Isabelle, since the layout features her.

Let's see, what else is going on in my world...I have started running again. Several sessions into my physical therapy after knee surgery, my physical therapist and I both determined that resuming running as exercise would be possible. So far I have been working back into it slowly. I probably won't ever be able to run as far, or as often as I used to, but at least I can run, and that is what matters most to me. I just have to be more conscious about listening to my body, and when it starts to hurt - stop!

What else - well, the job hunt continues. I left my FT job several years ago when we relocated to Washington state for Trey's job. Since then, I have been a SAHM, dabbling a little in PT work here and there in the craft industry. With economic times they way they are now, and my kids in school FT, I have been hoping to get back to work FT now. It hasn't been easy. I've heard everything from "you're over qualified" to "well you know, since you have been a SAHM for awhile now, you may want to consider going back to school and getting a masters or taking some refresher courses". Yeah - refresher courses in WHAT exactly?? Do they think my brain cells died because I stayed home with my kids - well technically - some may have, but still!! Jeesh. AND - believe me, if I COULD AFFORD to go back to school, I WOULD (well maybe - don't really relish the thought of doing homework), but if I COULD AFFORD to go back to school, I wouldn't be looking for FT employment. Really if you think about it, I've been doing one of the hardest jobs out there for the past 12 years - raising children!! I am a mediator, a negotiator, an event planner - a MOM!! We do it all and you know it is one of the toughest jobs I have ever had, yet one of the most rewarding too - at times - you just have to keep reminding yourself sometimes!! LOL!! So maybe I haven't dabbled lately in Excel, or done any database or product management as of late. I have learned many new things - like how to thread my sewing machine. Seriously, I am blessed to have had time to explore hobbies, I once never had time for like scrapbooking and photography.

Speaking of scrapbooking, here are a few pics of some projects I have been working on. First a little Love Notes book. I finally used a kit I got in Jan. 08 from Scarlet Lime to do this little album. I used some of the designs shown in the kit instructions, and some are my own creations. Also, I have added some pics of little Valentine Hearts I made to decorate the cupcakes the kids and I will be baking this week. Hope to post some pics of my Valentines tree I am working on now real soon.

Victim of Fraud

Yep, it's true. I cannot believe it. I cannot believe I did not catch it sooner! The other day while doing bills on-line, my husband Trey, questioned me about a bill that posted to our checking account that he assumed was a scrapbook kit club charge since in the item line description it said "Paperstreet". I recently cancelled my last kit club membership (boohoo!!) so I too was somewhat surprised and looking at the description of the charge that posted, I also thought it was a scrapbooking related charge. I knew I had not purchased anything lately on-line or otherwise, so I started investigating the charge. The post to our bank account on-line also had a web site notated which was Epoch.com. Epoch is an Internet Payment Service Provider (IPSP) which enables merchants to accept payments online. I had never heard of them before, but maybe some of you have. I proceeded to call them only to be told that somehow someone accessed my debit card number and was using my debit card to pay for a subscription to an on-line adult entertainment website!! Not only that, but this subscription charge has been posting to my account on a monthly basis since Aug. of 2006!!!!!!!!!!@@@@@!!!!! $24.87 a month since Aug. 2006!!!!@@@@@@@@ !!! How both my husband and I overlooked this, I will never know. Epoch told me they had some email address linked to my debit card that neither my husband or I recognized. They said whoever was at this email address had been using my debit card to pay for the adult website. Epoch said they would stop all payments and could refund me up to 4 months (going back 120 days) of payments but that was it. We also called our bank and spoke to the fraud department. They said if we filed a claim with them, they could only credit us back 60 days, so suggested that we wait and see if Epoch would credit us back, since they would go back as far as 120 days. The bank said this kind of thing does happen more often than you think. Weird. I feel violated. Still seems fishy to me.

Well, enough of THAT story. I finally took some pictures of my latest Valentines project. I've done an album like this in the past - "What we Love" - the Adams Family. In fact, I had one published last year in Paper Trends Feb./Mar. 2008 issue!! My very first publication!! It was pretty exciting being it was my first publication and they did a two page spread on it!! It's fun to look back at each family member's list and see how it has changed over the years. This latest album is made with a chipboard album from Maya Road. The papers are from KI Memories Wild Things paper line and the embellies are a mixture of KI Memories and Making Memories.

REDECORATING

Just a little facelift here for my blog. I finally finished updating my blog header. Thought it would get me in the mood for working on Valentines cards and projects. I have all my Valentine scrappy stuff out in my scraproom and am trying to decide on what to start next. Maybe I will check out some challenges and see if I can get motivated!!

Little Bird Out in the Cold

Record low temps here in Wisconsin, and more snow on the way again!! It has been below zero both today and yesterday, with windchill down to -40. School was cancelled both Thursday and Friday. The kids are climbing the walls, as am I!! Today we might go to the local ice rink to skate (indoor - of course!!), then out to a movie later. The kids spotted this little bird sitting in the tree outside by our deck. They couldn't believe he was out in this cold and wanted to bring him inside!! LOL!! This reminds me - I need to get out to my bird feeder and refill it with more winter seed.

I've been getting a little scrapping and submitting done on these cold winter days while I am holed up inside. Recently, I had one of my layouts (Hugs) published in Memory Makers Jan./Feb. 2009 issue. It seems like this was submitted soooo long ago - WAIT - it was!! Just now getting it published!! I have been on such a dry streak lately, I sometimes feel like giving up on submitting, but I guess you don't get published unless you keep trying, so I keep plugging along. Honestly, my favorite part about getting published is my kids' reaction to seeing themselves in the magazine.



Here is another LO I finished recently with one of my favorite paper lines from Making Memories - Noteworthy. I don't think I will ever tire of it. I recently stopped all my kit club subscriptions. Really trying to cut back on spending. I have sooo much scrappy stuff too to play with, I need to stop buying more. I have made a resolution to start working with WHAT I HAVE ON HAND, with maybe a new TIDBIT added here and there!!


Last but not least, I will finish up with my December Daily. Yes, I DID finish it, just never got around to posting the last few days. I enjoyed this project and look forward to pulling it out next year and looking back at Christmas past!! This has prompted me to do a similar monthly picture journal. I got the idea for a picture/journal in a class I did with Danelle Johnson last year. Didn't get it done last year, but no time like the present to start it, this being the beginning of the new year and all. I will post some pics of it at the end of the month. I am sure some of you have already seen this project on Danelle Johnson's Blog. Oh, and promise to myself - update blog header!!






** Sorry, missing Dec. 21, 22 and 24 - can't get these photos to load right.

A White Christmas

You would not believe the giant white fluffy flakes coming down right now!! It is absolutely gorgeous to look at, however, I fear it may keep our company from coming today. My husband's two sisters and their families are suppose to drive up from Naperville, IL - not too far, but still, not fun driving in this kind of weather. At least it is suppose to stop around 3PM - finally (has snowed past three days here).

I spent most of the day cleaning yesterday and grocery shopping for our Christmas Eve munch fest!! Today, the kids and I plan to bake Santa's favorite Snickerdoodle Cookies and try not to eat them all, so we have some left to leave for Santa tonight. Trey is at work and they are having a holiday luncheon that he set up for the plant - he loves to plan those sort of things. He's a good man!! I am praying for his safe trip home from work. He is suppose to start heading home right after the luncheon, but his normal commute without poor weather conditions is over an hour one way, so who knows what it will be like today??!!

Hoping to get caught up on my Dec. Daily maybe sometime today. I have all my photos printed out and stuffed in the album. Just need to adhere and journal. It has been a fun project, but hard to keep up with over the holidays - even though I made the album in advance.

Well, off to get the butter our to start softening for our cookie baking. Warmest wishes to you all this Christmas Eve and a very Merry Christmas to you tomorrow!!

EWE!!!...Yellow Snow

I absolutely hate it - in my yard!! Yellow snow!! Ick!! However, when you have two big dogs, there is really no way around it - I guess, unless you let them go in someone else's yard!! BUT I WOULD NEVER DO THAT - FOR THE RECORD!! I just want my yard to look pristine and white - no track marks, no brown or yellow snow - just beautiful and untouched. I get maybe a glimpse of that, then the kids are out, the dogs are out, and everyone is having a grand time. Well, at least the kids play across the way in the green space on the hill - don't want them playing in yellow snow - DOUBLE EWE!! Each year, I try to keep the dogs in one area, so as to not make a mess everywhere, but that never seems to work either. We take walks too, but when we have a lot of snow, they get pretty paticular about where they will go, and their favorite spot seems to be right back in our yard. What a picture I must make trudging around in the snow with a pooper scooper!! Oh well, enough potty talk.

Yesterday was a big snow day for us - 14" as per the weatherman - the most recorded snow of the day in Wisconsin. Everyone got to stay home for the day, including hubby! Some pics of everyone outside having some fun.




I stayed inside working on Christmas cards still!! I know, I know - they are getting mailed no matter what on Monday. If they arrive late - it's the thought that counts!!! I cannot just make one style and stick to it - I get too bored, so I made four different styles - mix up the process a little for me. No rhyme or reason as to who gets what - they just get one!!





Still trying to knock out the last of my cards today and doing laundry - mostly drying the kids snow pants and mittens, as they go out then in, then out then in - over and over again!!! Tonight we have my oldest daughter's (Abbey) Holiday Ice Show to go to. Expecting more snow too - 3 to 5 inches tonight. That's nothing compared to what we just had, still - soooo cold, none of it looks to be melting anytime in the near future.