What's Brewing and some pesky little critters

So, Scot came home last Friday.  That was awesome!  Then, just a few days later, I discovered a louse on Georgia Kate's head.  Yes, just one louse.  No evidence of any other critters on anyone in the family, but we chose to treat it as an infestation.  No sense taking a chance on having a really big problem. So, we washed and washed and washed.  Found nothing else, but in the battle with this insidious little creatures, I feel power when I wash.  And wash some more.  Hopefully we have seen the last of them.  Gah.

On to more pleasant topics!  Jennifer Labre Designs has got a kit out this week that made me swoon.  Seriously.  When I saw it, I hit the floor.  And she took Scot's suggestion for the title, which made me even happier!  :D  If you love coffee, tea, or hot chocolate, you MUST have this kit!  What's Brewing is new today at OScraps.  RUN!  Run, I tell you!  You will love what you find!  Here's a layout I created using the kit:

Elise's Pieces gave us an adorable kit this week, too!  We Are In Love is full of pretty, rich colors and lovely elements as sweet as Elise can make them!  I added this kit to Fiddle Dee Dee Designs' latest template offering, Fuss Free: A Meaningful Life.  Add to it a super sweet picture of Maggie from 2003 and you have this:

And in a final digital moment for the day, I have been hard at work with the True Team, battling it out in the Rumble in the Orchard at Scrap Orchard!  This week's challenge was Yin and Yang.  We went with it!  This is our team layout with all 4 of our parts together:

And these are two versions of my portion, one with the scallop and one without. I kind of preferred it without, but with went better in the group shot! You be the judge! :D

Everything you see here is from Faith True Originals' store at Scrap Orchard!

I suppose that is all.  It is cold and rainy.  And foggy!  I can't see but a few feet out my living room window!  Praise God because we are desperate for rain in this dry land!  And I'm thanking him for this tiny little gas heater which is keeping at least half of my body warm right now!  :D
 

Until next time, my faithful readers...

One Day More!

So, who is now singing Les Mis with me????  :D  Scot comes home tomorrow.  In just over 24 hours he'll be back with us and all will be right in our world.  I can NOT wait!

There is a Rumble in the Orchard and it's super FUN!  It's a Creative Team contest for the designers who sell in the Scrap Orchard store.  We're 4 member teams and we have to create a layout or series of layouts following certain requirements.  The layouts have to fit together somehow to create a whole.  Round 1 results are due today and have started trickling in.  You can see the layouts here!  I'm part of The True Team for Faith True Originals.  Here's my part of our team layout!  We went in a little different direction than the majority of other teams.  We've created a single layout using one of Faith's templates.  To create the kit we used Faith's A Mother's Joy kit.  It's pretty cool to see the completed layout, which should be posted in our thread sometime later today!

I have no idea how this all works, but it's just fun to play along!

I worked on this layout a few weeks ago, using Faith True Originals and mle Card's Made Anew kit and Fiddle Dee Dee Designs Fuss Free: Shake It 2 templates!  Here's my sweet Georgia Kate and all her personality!

I hope to get more scrapping done today...after I get some real work done, that is!  :D


Until next time, my dear readers...

Alone? Never!

Well, I'm doing the single parent thing for about 2 weeks (give or take a day!).  Props to all of your ladies (and gents) who say goodbye to your spouses for long periods of time!  I couldn't survive it.  Honestly.  I miss Scot, my constant companion, conversation partner, and rock.  But the kids and I are surviving.  2 have been a little under the weather.  But we're trying to do fun things like try out a new shwarma place and play some games together.  It helps the time to go faster and I love family bonding.  I.E. Family LAUGHING!  :D

There's a RUMBLE going on at Scrap Orchard!  It's a battle of the creative teams, and it's proving to be tons of fun!  Even if you aren't part of the rumble, you can check out the fun here!

I've started a new novel the other night:  Mornings in Jenin, by Susan Abulhawa.  I can't put it down.  It's not a light read, but does give some perspective to the way Palestinians see the world, the things that they have suffered, and gives the Palestinian refugees a voice.  It's moving and sad and funny.  An extremely well-written book, I highly recommend it.  But it is not for the faint of heart.  I've have wept while reading it.

And I've been trying to scrapbook some, too.  I created another Facebook Timeline coverphoto using Fiddle Dee Dee's awesome template sat, Fuss Free: So Timely.  This time I used Elise's Pieces newest kit, Affirmation.  I love these templates and how they look at the top of my FB wall!

I'm offering my services to anyone who would like me to create one of these awesome pictures for your FB wall!  Just comment here or send me an e-mail.  The templates use anywhere from this many pictures to just 3.  You send me the pictures and give me an idea of color scheme and I create something using the kits I've got.  Honestly, I love doing it, so just let me know!

I plan to scrapbook more today.  I've got some kits to use for the designers I create for as well as the RUMBLE at Scrap Orchard!  I also have to get my workout in.  And maybe a mad game of charades!  And cooking some Palestinian rice that we all love.  And today I begin my official countdown until Scot comes home.  It's down to just a week today.  Before today the time felt waaaay too long for me to start counting, so I just ambiguously thought that he'll be home soon.  Let the countdown begin!

Been reading through the book of Matthew in my devotions.  That Sermon on the Mount is radical stuff!  I love following Jesus!  And he's the reason why I am never, ever alone.  What an awesome feeling!

Okay, blog readers, maybe I'll be back later today with some scrapbooking goodness!  Until next time...bye!  :D

Happy New Year 2012!!!

It's always crazy when a year passes and a new year begins, isn't it? How did an entire year fly by without me noticing? I hope that my scrapbooking and obsessively taking pictures helps my family remember the good times (and the bad) and helps us all to pause for just a moment to thank God for all of his blessings. I have so much to be thankful for, and I stand at the beginning of 2012, I just know it's going to be a year of blessings! Challenges, of course, but blessings, still!

Scot left today for a nearly 2 week stint in Nyack. Back to our old stomping grounds. I'm feeling a little sorry for myself for having been left behind. Though he knows I'm his biggest cheerleader and support his doctoral studies 100%! I'm just jealous that he's with our families and back to the life that is familiar and somewhat easier than our life here. But mostly that he's eating New York bagels and pizza! Just kidding. I really am most sad that he's with loved ones! But he's excited about his studies and I know he's going to be stretched and challenged and he's going to come out on the other side of his doctoral work a stronger person and leader.

What will I be doing? Well, I decided that today was a lounge in the house kind of day. I did wash all of our bedsheets (YEAH, ME!) and cook a good lunch (can someone say Mjuddara???), and put 99% of the Christmas decorations away (the nativity and the Advent Calendar are both still out). But I didn't actually "work." But the coming 2 weeks will be business as usual for me and the kids. They return to school on Monday after a 3 week vacation and my schedule presses on. Hopefully we'll have time to enjoy each other, too!

I have been scrapbooking! I'll share a few layouts! :D

First, using Winter Wonderland by Jennifer Labre Designs, I created this beauty, featuring Mam-mam's tinsel tree! As a child I loved that ridiculous, tacky tree! The template I used is another great one by Fiddle Dee Dee Designs from her Fuss Free: Daily Goodness collection.


Next is a little something I created for Cheryl's feature at The Daily Digi.  I used a retired Nikki Epperson Christmas kit and one of Cheryl's templates from the same pack: Fuss Free: Daily Goodness!


Finally, Cheryl created this awesome templates, Fuss Free: So Timely, to create fun coverphotos for your Facebook timeline!  I came up with one for myself and then I did one for my mom and BFF, Mara!  LOVE the results!
This one uses Jennifer Labre Designs' Holly Jolly kit:


Faith True Originals The Sweet Life


I am anticipating an amazing year full of JOY and happiness!  I hope and pray the same for you, my faithful blog readers!  Happy 2012!!!

Scrapbooking goodness!

Like I said yesterday, I've been busy...busy scrapbooking! :D No, seriously, we've been insanely busy, but I have managed to squeak out more than a few pages in the last few weeks! Enjoy!

First up? A gorgeous collab by Designs by Kat and Faith True Originals, Glad Tidings. I combined it with a template by Fiddle Dee Dee Designs, Fuss Free: You Spin Me (tell me you aren't singing the song right now!)

Next up is another Faith True Originals/Fiddle Dee Dee combo, this time using Faiths newest kit, Winter Folly and Snow Wordart and Cheryl's template pack, Fuss Free: Like, Totally!

Nowe we're jumped to this adorable kit by Elise's Pieces, The Merriest Collection (linked to just the papers...but all parts of the kit are there!). Tell me those cheeks don't make you giggle! My sweet GK!

And here's GK all grown up and with no front teeth! This stunningly beautiful MUST HAVE Christmas kit is Holly Jolly by Jennifer Labre Designs. I can not sing the praises of this kit enough! WOW!
And this kit is just full of Christmas Cookie sweetness! Another winner by Jennifer Labre Designs, Sugar and Spice is perfect for all of your holiday (and everyday) baking! These elements are so yummy!
Last but definitely NOT least, a combination of Jennifer Labre Designs' gorgeous Christmas kit from last year, Joyful (still availalbe at OScraps!) and a stunning template by Fiddle Dee Dee Designs for Cheryl's feature at the Daily Digi:
I hope that you feel inspired to create when you see some of my layouts! Digital scrapbooking has been such a joy in my life over the last 2 years! I'm so thankful I discovered it and all it's flexibility and FUN! I've got a few more layouts, but those will have to wait for another day! Merry Christmas to all my blog reading friends...all 2 or 3 of you! :D

A month has passed...

How does time continue to fly on by? I've wanted to post a blog update several times in the last couple of weeks and just never had the time, or, upon sitting down with a few minutes in the evening, promptly fell asleep! Sigh. That's life, I suppose! But I'm here now, so enough with the time flies diatribe! I've been scrapping (I guess I've got time to scrap...just not to

blog! ;) and I've got lots to share with you all!

I've also been preparing for Christmas! As the pastoral couple in our International Church, we've been keeping busy! We had a lovely Christmas dinner, a Christmas movie night, special services and Sunday school lessons, and this weekend we've got 2 meetings: one on Friday afternoon and the Christmas Eve Carols and Candle lighting service. We've attended the Ramallah city Christmas tree lighting (and saw the prime minister of

Palestine, Salam Fayad, which was cool!), and have been baking, watching holiday movies, and lighting our own Advent wreath at home with our kids. I love this holiday so very much! I snapped this cool picture of the Advent candles at Mosaic International Church last week on my iPod:

Scrapbooking post coming TOMORROW! I promise! :D

Celebrating the Advent Season

The Advent Season has come. How does your family celebrate the coming of Jesus? Do you have special traditions you return to year after year at this time? My family enjoys the daily Advent readings and the lighting of the Advent candles. This year we hope to add a Jesse Tree to our family's traditions.

Of course, we enjoy the other aspects of the Christmas season: the gifts, the parties, the caroling, Santa Claus, etc. But we try to keep our focus on Jesus throughout the month.

I hope and pray that you and yours enjoy a blessed Christmas season full of the wonder of the first Christmas that happened so very long ago!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope you all enjoyed a lovely Thanksgiving Day with family and friends! We enjoyed an amazing meal and great company! I am blessed and have so much for which to be thankful.

Got a chance to scrapbook earlier in the week and finished this layout, inspired by my new favorite iPod game, Words with Friends! The stuff I used all came from Scrap Orchard and the links are following the picture:

New Year's Papers

Boardgames

Scramble Alpha

All by Faith True Originals

Fuss Free: Set 8 by Fiddle Dee Dee Designs

Time for the Advent season to begin! I love this time of year!

Gratitude

Jennifer Labre has a gorgeous new kit out today at OScraps. You can see the kit here! Gratitude has so many yummy elements and gorgeous colors. Jenn's talent in designing is amazing! Her elements make me want to reach out and touch them! I used it to scrap some pictures that make me smile!

It's coming on Thanksgiving! We're getting excited about our Thanksgiving Day celebrating with friends here. But it's made me homesick, too. Sigh. It's not easy being away from those we love. It helps to have good friends and friends who feel like family. Still miss my family and Na-na's pecan pie!

Tell a Tale

Cheryl from Fiddle Dee Dee Designs has got this amazing set of templates out this week at Scrap Orchard! Fuss Free: Tell a Tale lets your jouranling shine. I chose to write about Thomas' stay in the NICU way back in 1999. I've never written the story down, but it wasn't hard to remember the emotions that overwhelmed us at that time. It was good to write it down. The pictures we have on the computer are low quality scans (pre-digital!), so the journaling really tells the story. If you like to feature your journaling, you MUST have these templates! You can grab them HERE!

I coupled this template with an adorable new kit by Elise's Pieces, Just Friends. She's guesting at The Digichick this month!

It was good for me to think about how blessed we are, to thank God that Thomas' stay in the NICU was short and that he is a healthy, growing boy these days. It was good to think about how very much I love him. And maybe that's my thankful post for the day! I'm thankful for Thomas, for his endless energy, for his sweet smile, for his loving affection. I'm thankful that he is healthy and well-adjusted and that he loves people, just like his Mama. <3 So, here's that layout:

Jennifer Labre's got something gorgeous out this week, too! This mini-kit is Fall Splendor, and it's full of digital yumminess! I used another Fiddle Dee Dee template, Fuss Free: Artisana 4. And I got to remember fondly the times we spent with Papa Joe. He's been gone for 2 1/2 years, and I still miss him so very much. Oh, how he loved his little Farmer! <3