The One with All the Inspiration

I thought that today I would do a post of some beautiful people and things that are inspiring me today/this week/any old time. ;)

1) Tessa. This girl makes the most Ah-mazing buttons you have ever seen. Check some of them out! They are perfect for scrapbook pages or embellished art or even to put on hand knit or crocheted items. Here is her etsy shop.


2.) I've been reading Kristi's blog forever, and it's one of my favorites. She recently did a Photo Challenge and all the pictures were so incredibly gorgeous that I had such a hard time choosing my favorites! If you have a few free moments and want to see some amazing photography, check out the challenge here and vote for your favorites.

3.) Crocheted acorns! How can you not love them? Her shop is here.


4.) This yarn just screams "Fall" to me. I know, I know, it's almost Winter, but I do so much wish it was still Fall. The shop is here.


5.) This funny girl, Kate. Her blog posts always crack me up, and she is a knitting and baking machine. (Nevermind her most recent post.....:) "Met" her through Ravelry, and she travels to MN often, which is my neck of the woods! Kate, we should meet up some time. Then you can learn me how to knit socks in person. :D

6.) Bella Blvd. Oh, how I hope against hope that my LSS will someday carry these beautiful lines of paper and embellishments. I love it and want it ALL!





7.) My sister. She just moved to New York City a few months ago, and I just love living vicariously through her. Her pictures and stories about life there are just so interesting. I really hope to visit someday. She's also doing NaBloPoMo, so go visit her blog and leave her a comment, I bet she'd love it! :)

In case you didn't know, my favorite number is 7, so I will stop there. Hope this post gave you a little bit of inspiration also, especially when the weather is dreary and the days are dark for so long.

The One with All the Fun

Found this on Emily's blog and thought it would be something fun to do.

Outside my window is rain & clouds. Suits my mood perfectly.

I am thinking about the holidays and how much I hate them. I know, I'm a Grinch. I can't help it. I don't even think I'm gonna put the tree up this year.

I am thankful for to have 2 jobs that I love & friends and family that put up with me.

From the kitchen turkey and stuff (x2) on Thursday. After that I am making the "meat" dish that I put up the recipe for last week.

I am wearing sweats. Yes, I am at work.

I am creating many secret Christmas knitting projects.

I am feeling overwhelmed, exhausted & scared.

I am reading some light and fluffy chick lit. I can't get into anything of substance right now.

I am hoping against hope.

I am hearing the hum of my computer.

Around the house are some delicious smelling candles. Pumpkin, apple & cider. Yum!

One of my favorite things is sleeping. I could sleep for 20 hours per day if I didn't have to work or eat.

A few plans for the rest of the week include my 3rd & 4th day of 4 double shifts in a row, grocery shopping (JOY), Thanksgiving (x2) on Thursday, work on Friday, funeral on Saturday, sleep and clean on Sunday.

Ciao for now!

The One with a Recap

Thought I'd do a recap of my 2009 goals, since it's almost 2010!

1.) Blog atleast once per week. Well, I started the year off really well, but then kind of fell off in Spring and Summer. I do believe I have slightly redeemed myself by actively participating in NaBloPoMo. And, I am actually enjoying it A LOT! I plan to continue blogging a lot even after it's over.
2.) Finish 52 books. I have finished 49 books this year. I am well on track to meeting this goal.
3.) Finish 75 scrapbook LO's. As of yesterday, I have finished 81 layouts! I am very proud of myself for this one, especially since I missed my goal of 75 for 2008 by 10.
4.) Finish 20 knitted items including my first pair of socks. I have 9 FO's for this year. SLACKER! I have NOT even come close to attempting socks either. If things go well, I should have atleast 5-10 more FO's before the year is over, but I need to get cracking.
5.) Teach myself to crochet. Haven't even started yet. Oops. I really keep meaning to though, I swear. I know that this is definitely NOT going to happen in 2009, but I'm gonna put it on my list (again) in 2010. :)
6.) Eat healthier/exercise more. I have been doing very good with eating better. I hardly ever take frozen dinners for lunch anymore and I have been eating a TON of good fruits and veggies. I have NOT been exercising like I should though. Another one for next year.
7.) Spend more quality time with my husband and the puppies. I am sad to say that this is not working too well. With me starting a second job recently, we are not seeing each other except maybe once a week. I am hoping we can make more time together in the new year, after the craziness of the holiday's settle down. Never mind the 10 day trip to California that I'm taking.....
8.) Take more pictures of random things. I have been doing OK with this. I have been really good at taking photos of my layouts and sharing them, but I have not been taking very many of every day life. I would really like to get better about this in 2010. I did take a TON of pictures on Halloween & at the Fall Retreat.
9.) Get (and Stay!) up to date on printing my photos. Oh, Ugh. I don't even want to think about how far behind I am. I haven't had photos printed in atleast 6 months. In fact, I had to get another flash drive, since mine got too full. Sigh, another one for 2010.

So, there ya have it! I'm getting excited for the New Year. Not only because the holidays will be OVER, but so I can make some more (or the same:) resolutions for next year! I like having a clean slate to start all over with.

The One with Some Layouts

Well, we had our 12 hour crop and silent auction for Annette yesterday. We raised over $1200 for her family! We shared a whole lot of tears, but some really great laughs as well--talking about her and remembering the good times we've had together. Maybe someday I'll share the video of her telling the story about Teddy. It's pretty hilarious.

Here are all of the layouts I finished yesterday:









The first two are my favorites, but I like the last two also. I scrap-lifted the last two from her, and they came together super quickly. Jen is wonderful inspiration! I can't believe I got 4 pages done in 1 day--that must be a new record for me. Thanks for looking, hope you all enjoy the last day of your weekend. Today is the first day of 4 days in a row of 10+ hour shifts. But, then I get two days off! I'm so excited! :)

The One For Annette

This is how I remember Annette best. Joking around, having a good time, scrapbooking. I'm pretty sure she decided yesterday was her time to go so she could be up in Heaven scrapbooking with us while we were at RSC.

For all you local people, the silent auction is still going on until atleast 10 pm tonight. Please stop down and check out all of the awesome items, which include 2 different signed books from Cathy Zielske, whimsy jars full of scrapbooking things, baskets of dog treats, candles, a free nights stay at Ironwood Springs, and so much more!!!

The One For Annette

Just wanted to thank everyone in blog-land for their prayers. My scrapbooking friend, Annette passed away just a few moments ago. She has been suffering for a very long time, and we are grateful that she is with God now.

We are still having the crop and silent auction to raise money for her family TOMORROW at Rochester Scrapbooking Company. If you are in or near our area, please come and crop from 10 am - 10 pm OR just come by and look at the silent auction items. There are so many things to choose from and every single dime of the proceeds go to Annette's family.

Thank you, and I want you all to know that each one of you are so special to me and your comments, thoughts and prayers mean the world.

The One With . . . . .

I have nothing to blog about! My life is too damn boring. Work 2 jobs, commute 10-15 hours per week, home, scrapbook and that's really about it. I am looking forward to next week because I have 2, count 'em, 2 whole days off of work. What the heck am I going to do with myself, you ask? Well, put up my Christmas tree for one, and work on some Christmas crafting. And maybe even see my husband for more than 15 minutes at a time. What a concept! Life's not always a bowl of cherries, but I am grateful for what I do have. Thankful for my husband, who's always taking care of me (us really) even when we don't have much time together. Love you, hubby! ♥ ♥ ♥