Load 512 progress report

 So far so good. It always seems to start this way. I keep up just fine. This go around, I am really shocked that I have found a way to keep up with the daily prompts. I made it a point to have all of my page calls and assignments done for Scrapbook News and Review magazine.  Working on their staff has been awesome so far. it was a bit harrying at first, as is any job. Now I have a handle on the workload and am just enjoying being a part of the team. What did throw me a monkey wrench was life, as usual.On day one I was dealing with a sewage back up in the house. I haven't been feeling my best. The landlord asked me to show our house( it's for sale.) Little things here and there, but I have still manages to pull out pages.


Day one was to use a self portrait. I really dislike these type of prompts. Then I remembered I had a wedding photo of me prepping for the big day. So the issue of the self portrait became a non-issue. I used Paula Gilarde's ad inspiration challenge and was able to crank out a page with ease.

Cardstock: Bazzill; patterned paper: Basic grey
alphas and Stickers: basic grey, trim: Maya road
stamp: glitz designs with colorbox gold ink
mist: tattered angels, other: pearls, button, DMC floss, tulle

I am not 100% in love with the page. I liked everything until I got a little experimental. I painted the vine design with glimmer mist in the hopes of mimicking a design on the BG paper is was using. I then stamped the frames to use as journal spots. I have received many nice compliments about that portion of the page. I personally feel like it's kind of flat. It's funny how the parts you love are usually a miss but others rave about the parts of the page you think look horrid. LOL.

Day 2: I worked on my project life pages for February. I am no where near finished with those. I will share the full February pages in a later post. I know I am seriously behind with PL. Quite honestly though, it's not worrying me in the least.

day 3: My favorite page so far.  I have these HORRIBLY grainy photos of my new kitten meeting the family dog. Since these photos were a one of kind/ time deal, I am using them. I cleaned them up with photoshop the best I could. I used a stencil to make a custom background. Then I just layered some paint and embellies. The page came together fast. It's a fun page and I adore it!

Patterned paper: Die Cuts with a View
paint: claudine hellmuth; Die cuts: the Girls' paperie and
iloveitall- etsy; Buttons: October afternoon
Stickers: October Afternoon Other: acrylic paint, stencil,
and heart button

For whatever reason, the Beatles song was stuck in my head while I made this page. : You say "goodbye, I say hello..." It's time for me to go make dinner now. Check back with me later for the Mother's day blog hop and more LOAD pages.

Easter is almost here

  My son is counting down the days. He is pretty spoiled. Last year we took him to the Easter Fair at the resort my husband works at. We might go again this year, since we all had a blast. They had a ton of crafts, games and of course, the usual fair foods like slushies and cotton candy.

Floral paper- cosmo cricket, polka dot paper- sassafrass, grid paper- october afternoon. Ribbon- MM, paperclip-MM, journal spot-Jillibean soup, flowers- sassafrass, waterfall stickles, glimmer mist in electric blue and viva pink, boy epoxy button- pink paislee, sweet acrylix button- KI memories, 7 gypsies red mini paperclip, October afternoon stickers, Martha Stweart background stamp with clear embossing powder, Webster's pages alphas with glossy accents, DMC floss
Inspired by Peppermint Granberg's "First Day"

I guess I need to get into the spirit of things. Easter sort of crept up on me this year. I don't even have our decorations up yet. I guess I better do that today. Whether you celebrate Easter or Passover, I wish you a wonderful holiday!

A pair of Boy's Shorts, part 1

  The shorts were ripped. Worn thin from frequent use, they were, at this point, beyond repair. Maybe some moms would be sad, but I saw an opportunity. Here in my hand was some of the coveted fabric appearing on scrapbook pages everywhere. Now, despite being on a limited budget, I had some fabric to use on my own pages. It might not be brightly patterned...but perhaps, I could change that with a little creativity. Perhaps, I thought, this one pair of boys shorts could go a long way. So here they are in their wrinkled glory, ready to use:

one very wrinkled, beat up pair of my son's shorts

I felt kind of lucky that they were khakis. I think it will make them easier to find uses for. I can envision myself cutting away the pockets, stamping on some of the spaces with paints, or using strips to make masculine looking flowers. There are a ton of possibilities.  Possibility number one was a simple one indeed. I noticed the drawstrings on the shorts were the right colour to be used as trim on a page that I was working on.

         Cathy Z sketch and journal spot, October Afternoon papers,
                              salvaged trim, Jillibean soup flowers-red with BG brads and misc. buttons,
            Maya road flowers- check, October afternoon checked alphas,
Cosmo cricket tiny type alphas

This was not an easy page for me to make. First of all, I had challenged myself to use up more of the patterened paper in my stash. I also endeavored to use up some cardstock scraps. That was not the hard part though. This is a page from the Cathy Zielske design your life series at BPC. The idea being to step into Cathy's simple style so that you learn more about page composition and design. Once upon a time, I was a more simple scrapper. Now I find myself reaching for paint, and though I do like how this page turned out, I am still thinking I should have splattered it up somewhere or somehow.
  Regardless of how hard page one might have been for me to complete, I still had page two to work with. I also had just one piece left of the drawstring trim. So I sort of replicated page one's design. The  drawstring

  

made for the perfect trim for both pages. Now, I still have quite a lot left of the shorts to use up. I can not promise you that will happen right away. I scrap where creativity takes me. I do promise to share the pages I do when I do use up those shorts...so stay tuned. 

Not Quite Straight and Even

 I have always had a problem with lining things up correctly. I can sort of eyeball something and cut it fairly close to the dimensions I need. However, despite rulers and various scrapbook tools, I somehow always end up with pages that are somewhat skewed. I guess I could let it bother me, but the frustration of constantly taking pages apart( over and over again) just to find that I have put them back together, yet again, slightly off kilter has led me to believe I will never be a straight, on the grid kind of scrapbooker. It's ok. I guess it's just a part of my style that is inherently me. Besides, if I never told you I meant for this page to be nice and even, set  in the center would you have ever known? it looks like it was meant to be this way.

All products are OA with the exception of DMC floss,
glimmer mist in spring rain and perfect pearls mist in Biscotti

Someone told me it adds to the character of the page. Maybe it's a happy mistake. Maybe my sub-conscious did this on purpose. Who knows?!?! Either way, I chose to accept how I made this page and I really do love it just the way it it!

Bringing Ju Ju Bee Home

     Recently, we were very lucky to open our home to a new kitten. When we first met her, she was full of energy and bold enough to jump right to the front of the kennel to play. We figured that she would be the perfect kitten for a home with an energetic little boy and a playful, older tabby cat. When I saw the Layout a Day prompt about home, I figured it would be a great opportunity to scrap about our new kitten's homecoming. It was not as smooth as we had expected. From carrier to car to house, she became quite frightened. She cried all the way home and remained quite timid  during almost the entire day. We were not sure where that brave kitten had gone.

Viva Pink and Electric Blue glimmer mist
Pink paislee paper and rub on house
OA alphas and brown rub ons
Sassafrass border
Maya road chipboard

Since I am participating in May Flaum's Curious Scrapbooker's field guide class and week one is all about misting, I used a chipboard house from a mini album as a mask( mini album pages make wonderful shaped masks). I carried through with the house theme by using the Pink Paislee house paper. I am no stranger to using mists, but I have still learned new things from May as I always do. I am sure you will see more fun, messy pages from me over the next few weeks as I follow along with this class. I am really excited to see what new techniques I can pick up.

   As for our kitten...she has settled in quite nicely. I don't think it took her too long to figure out that she has a good home. She is very playful and affectionate. Her name is Ju Ju Bee. How she got her name is another story. I am sure it's going to appear on a page I make somewhere in the near future.

 

A Slightly Sour Adventure

  Last Easter, we took my son to a carnival at a local resort. There were a lot of great games, arts, crafts...and the opportunity to fill the bottle of your choice with powdered candy. What child could resist that?!?! There were a variety of flavors to choose from. Some sweet. Other sour. We advised my son not to choose the sour. He is not much for sour candies. Inevitably, some sour candy was put in his bottle.
    I'd like to show you his reaction to the candy. I did photograph it. Not to tease, but, I must say that I loved his reaction! Alas, it's part of my chinese whispers page for Club CK which I can not yet reveal( stay tuned). So for now, I will just share page one with you. I made it for the new CSI challenge group and I used some of the materials from my January Counterfeit kits. At CSI, you get a folder or case file like this one:
                         
Then you use it as inspiration for your page.It's sort of like a recipe challenge. Anyway, it provided a great jump off point for my page. The colours reminded me of the powdered candy. My counterfeit kit had yellow and turquoise papers in it. I felt like I could add some mists and embellishments to warm those colours up and meet the challenge requirements for CSI.

Creative Scrappers Sketch#198
Papers by sassafrass, pink Paislee and October Afternoon
DMC floss, Iroc jewels,
Ruby Rock it button
Little yellow Bicycle- tiny alphas and purple glitter alpa
Amer. crafts thicker-forest
salvaged ribbon
fruit punch stickles, pink paislee die cuts

  The title was inspired by the idea to document an adventure. The full title reads " Sandy Candy: a slightly sour adventure for the tastebuds."  The idea of using advice in the journaling set the stage for the story I told about my son and the sour flavors.
  That sort of odd looking thing under the title...well, it's a mask of sort. I made it from the top of some packaging. It's the part that would hang from a hook. I cut it out a bit more. I am not sure it it counts at the architectural element.It sort of looked architectural to me in an artsy sort of way. Regardless, I sort of liked how quirky it looked. I used this moss coloured glimmer mist which looks more blue green to me than deep green. I know I only really needed two pieces of evidence...but I did manage to get some other items from the evidence list on my page. The circles were cut from a sort of purple sheer ribbon. I hand stitched the swirls and added flowers and gems( my version of stones).

   Once again, I have managed to add some of my nemesis colours to a layout. I don't much care for yellow. Pink and purple are hard to get onto boy pages. On this page though, they had a little meaning. This carnival was at a resort hotel. So the yellow and turquoise remind me of the warmth of that day. Those colours, along with the pink and purple, are also colours of the candy. So it all sort of fit together. Adding the black to the page gave it a little masculinity. Overall though, it was the theme of the page that drove me to choose the elements that went on it. Proof positive that a page with a boy can have girl colours and flowers without being feminine.

January's Counterfeit kit

 I started participating in these challenges at the Counterfeit kit challenge about a year ago. While I could not participate in every month, I sure did enjoy partaking in them. I have become more aware of the contents of my stash. I have found new ways to use my supplies. I have also learned a little more about why some patterns go together and how to pair papers from different lines. So if you have never tried counterfeiting a kit, I really encourage you to do so. You may be surprised about the things you learn about yourself and your supplies.
  As usual, when I make my kits, I tend to go a bit overboard. That's the terrific thing though, about using your stash. It's not like when you are in the store and you overspend. There is no real penalty. I chose to lift three of the Cocoa Daisy kits suggested for the January challenge. The first is based on the cocoa and marshmellows kit.

Papers: October Afternoon: ducks in a row-sleep tight( yellow) and
Fly a kite-sprinklers, Sassafrass- Vintage yummy- darling dear
K and co. jeweled brads-wild saffron
October Afternoon- farmhouse flower sack
October Afternoon- 5 and dime found alpha
ribbon- webster's pages fabric

I am still not too sure about using the darling deer paper. I like the pattern, but I am trying to think about what I might use a deer with in my photos. So that's why I chose the OA blue paper pattern as well. it will be a nice alternate if the deer paper does not work.
  The second kit is based on the Sunshine and Snowflakes kit. I plan to use my Martha Stewart snowflake punch if I make any winter related pages. I also added a touch of blue. I am not a huge yellow fan. I am ok with it as an accent colour but am not fond of it in large doses.

Papers: Sassafrass sunshine broadcast-static( grey polka dot)
all other papers are from the Pink Paislee house of three soiree collection
Pink paislee Printed tissue
Pink Paislee soiree wood shapes
American crafts thickers-forest
Ruby Rock-it summer house bitty buttons
misc. ribbon

The last kit I chose to lift is the Amber Snowflake kit.

Papers: Crate paper- farmhouse( ruler) and Restoration-cents( die cut)
sassafrass- life is beautiful- Piccadilly( rose print)
all others- October Afternoon farmhouse( black print) and Thrift store
Misc. white doily, wood banner pieces
Sassafrass alphas-goldenrod
Prima button pieces

I know some people have mentioned to me that they would be frustrated to not be able to match each exact piece. I know that when I first started counterfeiting kits, I felt the same way. I have found though, that it is very satisfying to find a similar pattern that works. I feel like I get more from my stash this way. I hope others try this challenge in 2012. It's very budget friendly! Now...since it's a Saturday, I hope to play with some of these kits!

A White Christmas- My Version

 I live in a warm climate. So, technically speaking, there is not white Christmas here. We have palm trees, cooler sea breezes, and holiday lights. I have only seen snow a handful of times in my life. It's a beautiful thing, but something I am glad I don't have to deal with every year. So, where's the white Christmas? It's hidden in the photos and memories I have recently scrapped of a trip to Colorado. It's the magic of tiny snowmen, the falling snowflakes, and crunch of the snow under your feet.
   One of the most magical things I have ever done with my son is to build this little snowman.

Pencillines sketch #262
OA papers, recollections snowflake stickers, ATD title sticker, glass beads, glossy accents, Jolee's felt snowman, Crate paper sticker, Kaleidoscope slide with transparency by magic scraps,glimmer mist in silver sugar, viva pink and electric blue

He was the tiniest of snowmen. At 6 inches tall, he was largest snowman that my son and I had ever built. I think we shall always remember him. Building him was not just a first for my son, it was a first for me.
  The magic of falling snow may sometimes be lost on people who deal with it on a regular basis. For us, though, even the tiniest of flakes was the most amazing and wonderful thing.

Unknown papers, doodlebug snowflake brads(?),Inkadinkadoo stamp with colorbox lagoon ink,Martha Stewart snowflake punch,waterfall stickles, sequins, glass beads, i-roc jewels, unknown vellum flocked with white snowflakes,unknown quote,glimmer mist in frost,moonlight and electric blue
title block received in a swaplifted from a page called "June Faves" by Lynette Pancho

To mimic the look of the snow, I added some bits of leftover punched bits. The bits were from a sparkly Bazzil cardstock. So when I sprinkled it over the glue, some turned up on the matte side while others were sparkly.It added a nice bit of texture.

   Of course, after admiring the beauty and wonder of the falling snowflakes, children will then wonder about catching them on their tongues. I guess nothing tastes as sweet as a falling snowflake.

 Unknown papers( one of which is a vellum with white flocked snowflakes), martha Stewart snowflake punch, i-rock jewels, unknown snowflake button, glass beads, glossy accents,Karen Foster alphas outlined with an oceanview blue bic mark it,inkadinkadoo stamp with colorbox lagoon ink. Based on an Lo by Dina Wakely called "oh Fun."

Though I may not have the option for a white Christmas, making these pages sure got me into the holiday spirit. I hope your family enjoys the holidays and has a wonderful New year ahead of them!

Cookies For Santa

No...we did not bake them this year. At least not yet. I just finally got around to scrapping about last year's cookies. LOL. Nothing like being a bit behind, right? Months ago, I scrapped the photos of my son baking said cookies. As I was flipping through last December's album, I thought now might be a good time to use the scraps up. I must say, that when I saw that the Sketchy Thursday sketch really helped this page come together quickly.

Sketchy Thursday 12-8-11 sketch
Little Yellow Bicycle canvas border
Basic grey papers
Sassafrass alphas with glossy accents and glass beads
glimmer mist in Candy apple red and meadow
October afternoon stickers
I-rock gems
K and Co. brad
coffee filter

Perhaps soon, I shall get to baking this years cookies. Those photos sure make me hungry for some!

The Last Mission

   We didn't get to go see the shuttle lift off in person. Like many, we watched it live on TV. For a few days, it was all my son talked about. So it was definitely something I wanted to document. When I saw the current pagerize this challenge at Scrap Our Stash, I knew it would work well with the shuttle commemorative patch and the photo of my son at KSC.  Sometimes, it's difficult to find a sketch or page idea for using a 5x7 photo. Often, when I use 5x7's, I substitute it for 2 smaller photos as I did here. I also rotated Tammy's page to fit the orientation of my photo.

October Afternoon Rocket age paper, sticker and ephemera
NASA mission patch
DMC floss
Creative memories alphas with glossy accents
Pagerize This #12 challenge- Scrap Our Stash

  Since we did not attend the shuttle lift off in person, I went on-line and gathered some headlines which I will use for a second page later on. I plan to journal from the notes I took of my son's comments about the shuttle.Newspaper clippings and personal thoughts are  a great way to document historic events in your scrapbook albums.
You still have some time to pagerize Tammy! Don't forget to share your page with us at Scrap Our Stash!

Lunar Eclipse

  Sometimes we experience a wonderful moment in our lives but don't have a photo to document it. Last December, my son and I went outside in our Pj's, all wrapped up in blankets just so that we could witness the Lunar eclipse. The Eclipse itself was gorgeous. Unfortunately, I lack the skills and the camera equipment to properly photograph it. The next morning, my son drew a picture of the event so that I could still scrapbook about it. In some ways, the drawing is almost better than a photo. Not only does it preserve the moment, but it also shows how considerate my son is.

papers and brads from my June counterfeit kit:
pink paislee 365 degrees paper, making memroies poolside brads,
Maya road ribbon, brackets-American crafts forest thickers
items not from counterfeit kit: vellum, star brads ( doodlebug ?),
Making Memories noteworthy alphas, moon button, blue button
and ephemera from October Afternoon
Sassy lil Sketch 6-14-11

June's Counterfeit Kit

   It's that time again! Like a little kid, i have been eagerly awaiting the reveal of this month's Counterfeit Kit Challenge. While a part of me know's the things I will be using are already a part of my stash, another part of me is excited. Putting these kits together is almost as exciting as receiving a kit club in the mail! Those of you who have followed along with my other kits will not be surprised to see that, as usual, I went overboard as I shopped my stash. My only justification for that is that A. I did not spend any money in the making of this kit and B. I always intend on getting the most that I can out of it. Last month, I was able to make seven pages from my kit's supplies. This month, since I have no plans to travel and DH has a few paid holiday to burn, I hope to get even more pages done. Let's see if I can top seven pages.
   As for the kit itself, It may be a bit of a challenge with so many floral accents. Since the kit is styled after Burlap and Buttercups June 2011 kit, which has a slight summer tone, I am hoping I can utilize these summer florals in some masculine pages by playing up the colour palette. I got as close to the kit as I could in paper pattern and colour. I chose not to use any butterfly accents. Should I make any pages where I wish to use a butterfly, I shall cut one out of the Patterned paper from the kit.

Papers: turquoise- from the Best of K and CO.
Basic Grey basic-ledger
Crate paper restoration-Slip Cover
Crate Paper restoration-doilies
Sassafrass- Indie Girl-Pocahontas
Pink Paislee 365 degrees 6x6 pad
frame- Making Memories Chloe's Closet
Maya Road chipboard album-classic scroll frame
Maya Road Signature ribbon/trim in blue
Twinery Baker's Twine in Pea Pod and Caribbean
Sassafrass In stitch blossoms in kelly green,kraft, and vintage rose
Jenni Bowlin die cut journaling cards
Scenic route Garden grove laebls
Little Yellow Bicycle stick pins
Fancy Pants Write Now Rub ons
K and Co. fabric brads
Making Memories poolside brads
American Crafts thickers-Forest
Pink Paislee 365 degrees rub on
Pink Paislee 365 degrees borderlines

   You may be wondering about the chipboard album. I am not one to make mini albums, though I do greatly admire them. What I prefer to do, is to take the album apart and use the wonderful shapes on my pages. I thought the scroll pattern of this mini would make a wonderful substitute for the chipboard frames in the original kit. I can also opt to cut my own chipboard frames if need be.
  I also opted to make the add on summer kit. I chose a variety of papers from the scenic route grab bag I had received recently. They are the types of papers I might not reach for right away. I felt they complimented the papers from the main kit and that with the addition of the turquoise paper, the colours had a very summery feel to them. I do realize that there was only one bottle of mist in the original add on kit. However, lets face it, I LOVE to mist. So we all know it's highly likely for a variety of these mist colours to end up on a page.

papers: Sassafrass Indie Girl- free spirit
Sassafrass Indie Girlaffection
October Afternoon- patio umbrella
Scenic Route - Providence:Green st,Franklin St. and Scrap Strip
Scenic Route Sonoma- Plive Ave.
Making Memories Paperie greenhouse spiral journal book
Pink Paislee 365 degrees flip notes
Sassafrass paper whimsies- beatnik buds
K and Co. chipboard frames
Creative Memories black alphas
Making Memories simply stated rub on alphas
glimmer mists: patina, sapphire,tiger lily,viva pink,meadow green and candy apple red

  For both the main kit and the addition, I tried to choose papers I might not normally reach for. When I make these kits, I can often perceive new options for the papers and patterns that I might not have seen before. I also made it a point this time to choose some embellishments from pre-opened packages. I am challenging myself to try to finish those packages off. Stay tuned for further posts showcasing pages made with my June Counterfeit kit...

A Sort of Gypsy Life

  I was a very lucky kid. I came along in that time of life when my grandparents were able to travel. They loved having me with them. That meant lots of weekend trips to explore nearby camp grounds...at least one cmaping trip a month if not more. On the last day of school for summer break, they would pick me up in their RV. We'd drive as far as we could that day and then spend the summer exploring the United States. They only brought me home again when I had to go back to school.

Ella Publishing 4-18-11 sketch

I used October Afternoon papers from my April Counterfeit kit. The RV die cut is by Lil Davis Designs. it's been in my stash for 8 years! It's a good thing to finally use it on a page. I dressed up some Maya road chipboard with burgandy paint and diamond stickles. It's a sort of retro camping page with a little gypsy flair.

Scraphappy.org April Sketch

I really had a lot of great experiences with my grandparents. I wish I could travel more. I'd love to share some of the places I went with my son. As it is, we enjoy every opportunity to travel when our budget allows. I only wish it allowed more.

Inspired by Art

  Art can provide some wonderful inspiration. From colour palette to them, the possibilities are endless. Recently, I found a wonderful challenge spot called Artastic. This will be the 2nd time I have played along with their challenge. This month's painting featured my favourite time of year...

Autumn Wonder by Debbie Adams

                                                      
and I just so happened to have some fall photos that need to be scrapped. Last Fall, We took my son to Disney's Board Walk to trick or treat with some friends. I was able to get some great shots of the kids with Mickey Mouse in front of a cute fall theme backdrop. I wanted to make a whimsical page with a fall theme, rather than use the bright colours usually associated with Disney. I also did not feel that Halloween papers would be right for the photo. I looked to my April Counterfeit kit for inspiration. The October Afternoon papers gave it just the right cozy, fall feel.

Pagemaps sketch done for Sketches4all
misc. buttons
all papers October afternoon except for red/cream( Scrap within reach)
tree trunks- cosmo cricket earth love paper
Basic Grey Alphas

I used a buttermilk cream acrylic paint over brown bazzill cardstock. I chose to dry brush a bit, so that the brown and the texture of the paper showed through. I alternated faux sticthing and real hand stitching to add to the country style Fall theme. I hand cut the trees and the clouds for the whimsical look I desired.

Sketch Inspiration #216

The hardest part of these pages were the rolled borders. Since I did not have double sided patterned paper, I adhered to pieces together back to back. This made the paper quite stiff. So as I rolled it, I used glue dots to hold it in place. I then chose to hand stitch over the rolls to ensure they would not come undone.
  As you can see, my layouts don't resemble the painting very much. Inspiration does not need to be an exact reproduction. In this case, the colours from the painting and the trees are what made their way to my pages. So next time you see a piece of artwork, consider all of the possible ways in which you can interpret it.

Chances Are...

only what we make them. Some people look at life and see the negative. Others, find the positive. I think perspective gives us the ability to make our own happiness and luck. I try to see the good and have a positive outlook. I feel very lucky to have my husband and my son. Our life isn't always easy...but we are happy together. My husband often says we live a charmed life. I think that is true
    The song for this week at Scrapping to the music was perfect for this page. The lyrics brought to life some of the journaling I used to talk about the wonderful chance my husband had in his job.

SEI mimosa papers and stickers inked with SEI lime ink
Basic Grey brads
October Afternoon mini market alphas
Making memories greenhouse alphas
glossy accents
Let's Scrap Sketch 3-2-11

The photo is of the hotel in which my husband works. The number was the number of his office at the time of the photo. I chose SEI's mimosa line. It's usually hard for me to work with pink, because I am the only female in the house(other than my cat). I loved how the Mimosa papers matched the tropical feel of the hotel.

Be grateful for everyday and for what you have. Don't forget to make the most of your chances and to share those in your scrapbooks.

Home Economics

  I don't know about you, but I never learned to cook in school. I have heard that some took such classes. Home economics in my school was all about sewing...which I never have done well(except for on a Layout). Anyhow, cooking is and important skill. I learned only a tiny bit from my mother and grandmother. The rest I learned on my own. I am no gourmet chef, but I can feed my family just fine. I didn't want for my son to one day go out in the world without the skills he would need to cook and care for himself. So I set out to make cooking part of our homeschool curriculum. I figure that he's there with me anyhow and I also admit that I really enjoy these moments with him in the kitchen.

Sketchy Thursday 2-17-11 sketch
Scrap Whispers Go Green Recycle challenge-bread tags

  On this particular day, my son had decided he wanted to cook a whole chicken. So we got out some rosemary and other spices and set to work. As you can see, he quite enjoyed the experience. Little Yellow Bicycle's Savor collection was the perfect line for this page. I have been saving bread tags and this was the perfect page to use them on. I added a little pen detail and a recollections sticker, then hung them on some Twinery Pea pod baker's twine. For a fun twist to the title, I substituted the Maya Road house motif for the "o" in the title.

  I chose to use scraps from the first page to create a second layout. Going with today's LOAD211 prompt, I kept it simple with 5 patterned papers, alphabet stickers and journal strips.

I am finding these  LOAD prompts fun and inspiring. It is wonderful to make quick, decisively made pages that I like the overall look of. Almost as wonderful as enjoying a meal I have made with my son.

A cup of Co: A Scrap our Stash Pagerize this challenge

When I saw Joni's layout, the first thing I noticed was all of the wonderful paint. I love the look of it on a page.

 I loved her bold color and the way your eyes were drawn to the photo in the center. I chose also to use paint...though I was not as bold as she was. This is a page about a cup of cocoa. As silly as it is, my DS has always referred to hot cocoa as " a cup of Co". I realized I had never documented this cute saying of his when he asked me for a cup on a recent rainy day. He's 10 now, so there probably are not too many more years with cups of "co" in my future.

I used the white paint around the edges of the brown card stock because it reminded me of the frothy cocoa. I chose this October Afternoon paper because the browns reminded me of the cocoa while the blues were like the color of the rainy day in the photo. To get more out of my double sided patterned paper, I cut a window out of the center and glued a scrap piece of brown cardstock to the back.

I then was then able to use some scraps with the polka dot pattern to create faux ribbon. I have some of the paper left over to use on the 2nd page when I come back to it later. The felt flowers are Fancy pants and the buttons are Foof-a-la.

Don't foregt to stop by Scrap Our Stash for the current pagerize this challenge along with many others!