Jump

Happy Wednesday everyone.  I hope everyone is having a great day.  Me...well...I just received the fabulous Hey Sugar kit from Your Memories Here and let me say I love these colors.  I know it is technically a "Valentine's Day" kit, but the colors are so bright and cheerful; and the patterns are fabulous.  (did I mention the kit is only $10?)  I couldn't wait for the chance to jump right in and play.  And speaking of jumping......

I had a fun photo of Ainsley jumping (a favorite activity...that girl is a dare devil) and I loved the idea of using the huge letters from the kit for my title.  

I also added a few Prima flowers and a bit of pom pom trim.  (the wind was blowing a bit so those pom poms have quite a bit of movement, hee hee).  

So, what are you jumping into?

Hugs.

Nancy

March 28th....

and that means today is reveal day over at Sassy Lil' Sketches.

This months sketch was just fabulous.  I love a sketch with so many photos.

And we were so lucky this month to have Nikki Sivils send us products to play with.  Her new lines are just adorable.  You should definitely check them out.

Well, here is my take.

Nikki Silvis everything.  hee hee

Ainsley playing in the rain.  This time of year we get a lot of that.  hee hee

March Paper Sponsor (layout & card):

http://www.nikkisivils.com/

March Digi Sponsor:

http://sassystudiodesigns.blogspot.com/

Be sure and hop over to the Sassy Lil' Sketches blog to check out all the other girls work.

Oh, and because I loved the sketch so much.....

SEI papers, Paper Bliss snowman, AC Thickers, Imaginesce snowflakes

Having hot cocoa after a day on the slopes.  Not sure what happened to Mackenzie's cocoa photo, or Caitlin's, but.....  

Hugs.

Nancy

A Mini Album

Hi everyone.  Happy Wednesday.  I hope these first few days of spring have been good to you.  It has been pouring rain here the last few days, so I am sorry about the picture quality.  Sunlight just has not been available.  I know that I said I wasn't going to be around as much...but I did say that I would still have my DT commitments so.........

I found a cute little mini album at Michael's recently; spiral bound with kraft paper pages.  You know I just had to have it.

I covered it with a bit of burlap that I painted white and then inked. I added some of my favorite embellishments;  gorgeous new Vintage Trinkets by Marion Smith, tiny mini roses from Prima (one of my favorite embellishments) that I painted with some Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist, a larger Prima flower under my Prima chipboard and some Prima flourishes that I had cut up earlier .  I even accented my grungeboard with little bits of Prima e-line bling and a new Prima bird.  So cute!  I have already been through a whole package of those little birds and had to buy more.  hee hee..

I attached some of the larger charms from the Vintage Trinkets to a chain I had also found at Michaels and then attached the chain to the spirals.

As usual, I have no idea what my plans are to fill this little book...I just had so much fun making it.   Hope you have some fun today.

Hugs.

Nancy

Sorry, Crazy Busy

I know it has been a while, and I missed my regular Menu Monday post.  But things have been crazy, as sometimes happens with homeschooling.  I am really struggling with Ainsley completing her work and so am going to need some time to regroup and reorganize...focusing on her.  So, until then, my posts are going to be sporadic.  Educating my children needs to be my number one priority.

What does that mean?  Well...less posts, less scrappy goodness.  I still have my DT commitments, so you aren't totally rid of me.  And I enjoy playing so there still should be some of that.  But for a while at least....nothing too regular.

Before I go tho...I owe a few RAKS.  Heather, Cindy...I have your addys and you should be expecting some "happy mail" soon.  Elisabeth??? Send me your addy...I know you are in Europe, but I would love to send you at least a little something for playing.

Until then.

Hugs.

Nancy

Guest Blogger

Hi it's Ainsley and I am here today to show you some of the projects I have been making.

Last weekend we went to see my friend Sarah at her scrapbook store, Our Paper Place.  I took a kid's class from Jeanne.  It was super fun and I got to play with Cosmo Cricket paper.  Jeanne told us that they are going to try and do a monthly class, so if you are a kid and live in the Bay Area, you may want to check out Sarah's store.  Besides, she is super nice and she has super cute stuff that my mom always lets me buy.

Jeanne had everything we needed to make the project.  But I brought some inks and some pop dots to make mine special.

I put stickles on the fairies wings and on the butterfly.  I used some glossy accents to make the heart super shiny. I added the pop dots to the mushroom to make it stick up more.  I added a few pearls and rhinestones to make things sparkle.  

The ribbon was super cute and matched the box perfectly.  I used stickles in the center of the little flowers on the bottom of the box.

This is a mini album I made that fits inside the box.  On the fairy I used more stickles.  Her wings, her hat, her skirt...all sparkle.  Sarah was super sweet and wrote the title on my mini album.  It says To Fairy Land.  She has pretty writing.

I also made this page of my cousin, Lili.  My mom had been playing with buttons and so I wanted to play to.

It took me a long time to glue everything and to find the letters.  I made the flower with my mom's sizzix.

Well, that's all.

Love,

Ainsley

Lili...

Are ya'll getting tired of looking at photos of my adorable niece?  She is such a cutie, and it is nice to have pictures of a baby to scrap again.

These are both based on sketches from Sassy Lil' Sketches.  Sketches just make everything so much easier, don't you think?  Well, anyway.  Recently Lili and my sister came over to spend the afternoon.  We had a great time playing.  She rode the rocky pony...I knew I was holding on to it for a reason....

Cosmo Cricket Earth Love, Prima flowers and lace, AC Thickers

For dinner, I made homemade pizza.  Everyone got to design their own favorite combination.  Lili wasn't familiar with this concept (she will be 2 in a week...eeek...where did the time go).  As you can tell by the sauce all over her face, she loved it!  And, she loved climbing all over the table to try and get more.  hee hee

Fancy Pants patterned papers, Doodlebug alphabet, AC felt, Prima flowers, Miscellaneous buttons

Well, quite a bit going on today, so I am out of here.  Be sure and come back tomorrow as I will have a guest blogger!  Yep.....someone else in my house would like to share her projects!  Can you guess who?

Oh, and that reminds me....guess who wants to share her projects and tomorrow I will pick 2 winners, one from today's comments and one from last weeks "what should I do with this mini".

See you then.

Hugs.

Nancy

Your Memories Here....

I hope everyone is having a great week.  It is definitely spring here, and the weather, while still being occasionally rainy and overcast is getting warmer.  Spring makes me think of all the usual things; flowers, baby animals...and of course spring cleaning.  I am trying to get cleaned up and organized.

On my work table I always have bunches of photos that I have printed waiting to be scrapped.  So, when I found a huge clothes pin, I thought it would be perfect for holding my photos in progress.

I covered the clothes pin with some distressed scraps of Prima paper,  few Prima flowers and some scraps of Prima lace from the Your Memories Here store..  I don't know about you, but I hate throwing away those little scraps and small altered projects like this are the perfect solution.

Now, while my photos wait for me to find the time to play, they can be artfully displayed on my work table.

Thanks for stopping by.

Nancy

Prima....

I don't think it will come as a surprise to any of you to say I have a love of Prima products.  I love flowers and lace and bling, OH MY!  lol

Here are a few projects I recently completed using some of the gorgeous products from my stash.

Up first, my adorable niece, Lili.  She came over a few weeks ago to spend the afternoon.   My sister and I had a great time hanging out, and the girls all had so much fun playing.  Lili is growing so fast.  I can't believe we are already planning her birthday party.  Yep, I am helping my sister plan her daughters party.  I am even going to host!  lol

Prima Marketing patterned papers, flowers, birds, lace, bling.  Maya Road Butterflies, Ranger Industries Stickles, Jenni Bowlin stick pins.

Anyway...I used a sketch from Pagemaps for this...and lots of yummy Prima, the papers are from the Annalee collection.  I think the only not Prima items are the butterflies and stick pins.  I used a bit of Glimmer Mist on the flowers and birds to make them coordinate better with my papers.  I have found that my style lately tends to be more simple...but every once in a while.  hee hee

And another one.  This time my family dining at a local fondue restaurant.  The children love fondue, but...well...let's just say going out for fondue isn't cheap.  lol  Anyway....We went out and of course I took a few photos.  I used some older papers, this time from the Pastiche line.  The floral ribbon is actually Webster's Pages, but everything else here is Prima.

Prima Marketing patterned papers, florals, lace, alphabet; Webster's Pages ribbon rose

I used the BAP from Prima for this layout.  I love sketches.

Well, it is a full and busy day here.  Need to go start dinner.

Hope you are having a great day.

Hugs.

Nancy

So Much Going on Today

Hi everyone!  I am back!!!  And I just had to share a few more things that are going on today.

The first one is that it is reveal day over in Sassy Land!  Yep, there is a new layout sketch and a fabulous card sketch.  Be sure and check them out for your chance at some great prizes!

Also, over in Catch the Moments news.....So many new, gorgeous things are coming in from Winter CHA!  Not only the new Crate Paper, but today gorgeous new kits with Basic Grey!

Hello Luscious

Life of the Party

You don't want to miss out on these great products at great prices!

Well, be back tomorrow with a few projects.

Hugs.

Nancy

Menu Monday

Not a lot of time today, trying to get a few things done before heading out for the afternoon activities...but couldn't forget to come by and share.

Monday we had Cheese Enchiladas

Tuesday, Ainsley's favorite....tacos

Wednesday - Cobb Salad

Thursday - Rigatoni

Friday - Paninis (grilled sandwiches)

Oh, since none of these items really require a recipe.  How about I share a link to something we made last week for breakfast?  Homemade pop-tarts.  Ainsley loves toaster pastries.  Not the boxed ones, but the frozen.  Well, I thought it would be fun to make them from scratch.    We didn't add the frosting because they would have been super sweet.  

http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/homemade-pop-tarts.aspx

So, delicious.  Light, flaky..oh so good.  Well, everyone but Ainsley thought so.  Seems she likes hers soggy, not flaky and crisp.  sigh  But if you are looking for a special breakfast treat, I would highly recommend these.

Hugs.

Nancy

Won't You Be Mine?

I recently received the beautiful Be Mine kit from Catch the Moments Kits, and let me just say I am in love with these Sassafras Papers.  I know that they were originally a Valentine line, but the colors were just so fun and festive I couldn't resist using them for these photos of 2 of my favorite girls, my niece Lili and Mackenzie...sorry Ainsley, not today.  hee hee  

I mixed and matched the fun edge strips from the different papers to add interest to the page.  The first adding a border and the second became my rosette.  I added some buttons from the "Love" kit, one of the stickers from the Be Mine add on, and a few older felt embellishments I had in my stash.  I tied it all together with a bit of machine stitching.

I loved the patterns in these papers and was just heartbroken to cover the beautiful designs.  So, I cut the centers out of my papers to save for later.  This is a great way to stretch your paper dollar.  I again used some buttons from the "Love" collection and this time some "Merry" Thickers.

And finally, because I loved the pink floral paper so much I made this little card with a bit of the scraps and a handmade flower. 

I hope you can find some inspiration today.

Hugs.

Nancy

Hi

I had a few scraps of beautiful Prima Paper left from my class Friday night, and decided to make a quick little card.  The gorgeous flowers at Your Memories Here are just perfect for a quick card like this.  I stacked a few favorite blooms and added a bit of lace.  A quick sentiment and I know this card will really brighten someone's day.

Hope your day is bright.

Nancy

Terrific Tuesday! A Little Help Please?

It has been a great day here today.  Everyone was up and moving.  I got my coffee!  Brighton took the first 1/2 of his CASHEE!  And we are having tacos for dinner.  I wish we were having something fabulous for Mardi Gras, but.....

I wanted to drop off a project today and ask your help.  I made this mini album for a challenge over on Scrapbook.com, and I need to know what to put inside it.  As soon as I received this gorgeous chipboard from 3tailscraft I knew I wanted to make a mini album.  Of course, I love making projects but don't often think them through....leaving me with an album and no idea what to do with it.  So....I need your help.

What should I put inside this lovely?  Leave me a comment telling me how you think I should finish it.  I will take the names of everyone who helps and draw one name to win some yummy goodies!  This little mini is about 2 1/2 inches tall and has 6 pages.  So get your thinking caps on.  I will give you a week to comment.

Hugs.

Nancy

It's Monday!

Even though I had an incredibly busy weekend..and even though Ainsley is doing her best to push me over the edge..Since tonight's dinner is ready to go I am here with last weeks menu and a recipe.

Monday we tried a new item...Chile Relleno Casserole.  I loved it, Phil loved it...Brighton and Mackenzie both said they liked it, Ainsley of course was the lone dissenting voice.  Until Wednesday, when Mackenzie informed me that she didn't actually like it, that eggs are gross...but she didn't want to hurt my feelings.

Tuesday we had roasted chicken.  Everyone likes roasted chicken.  It was the mashed potatoes and broccoli they complained about.  lol

Wednesday we had pot roast.  Mackenzie has now informed me that she doesn't like meat.  I have no problem with this since I spent 3 years as a vegetarian and another 4 where I ate no mammals.  However, it would have been helpful to know this before cooking her dinner.  lol

Thursday night was scouts PLC...and that means pizza.  Of course, that also means that I don't have to cook, so it isn't all bad.  hee hee

Finally Friday, we had New Mexican Pork chili.  Yummo....or so I thought.  Mackenzie said too much meat, and Ainsley said too spicy.  I can't win this week.

Well, there ya go...a week worth of menus.  I thought they were tasty.  If the children want to be picky eaters.....Well, maybe I will have more luck this week.

For now tho, my favorite of the week was the Chile Rellenos.  So.....

Chile Relleno Casserole

10 Anaheim peppers, roasted and peeled (or you could use canned)
1 tbs olive oil
1/3 cup onion
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
6 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups milk
6 tbs flour
4 cups Monterrey Jack cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 325

In saucepan over medium high heat, saute onions in olive oil until translucent.   Add tomatoes and simmer on medium low till thickened (10-15 minutes).  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Spray a 9x13 inch baking pan with cooking spray.  Line bottom of pan with 1/2 of the peppers.  Distribute 2 cups of cheese evenly over the peppers.Repeat with the rest of the peppers and cheese.

Beat egg whites until a soft peak forms.  Mix together the milk, flour, and egg yolks.  Fold the egg whites into the yolk mixture.  Pour the eggs over the peppers and cheese.

Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown.  Remove from oven and evenly distribute the tomato sauce over the top.  Return the dish to the oven for another 30 minutes.  Let set about 5 minutes before serving.  Serve with rice, beans and fresh tortillas.



Time to run!  Back tomorrow with some scrappy goodness.

Hugs.

Nancy

Fun Friday!

Hooray for Fridays!  And this one is extra special because I am headed out to a scrap book class at my lss.  I can't even remember the last time I took a class at the store.  The last time I took any class what at CHA over a year ago.  And this class is taught by Marion Smith, whose work I love and adore!  I am totally excited.

Of course, before I head out, I wanted to share a few projects with you...and also show you a kit I just got from Catch the Moments.  I hope to play with it this weekend.

Isn't this kit adorable?  This is the Bouquet Kit from Catch the Moments Kits.  And it is just gorgeous.   You know I had to get the kit with all the add ons.  hee hee 

And here are a few layouts I have been working on.  Ainsley, when she was 3, playing dress up.  We have her as Harry Potter and a magician.  You wouldn't believe the box of dress up clothes my children had. 

Echo Park- Walk in the Park patterned papers and stickers, American Crafts rosette and alphabet.

And here is Ainsley, learning to sew.  She really enjoys using the machine and is getting quite good at it.  

My Minds Eye-Quite Contrary patterned papers, Cosmo Cricket - Material Girl cut outs, Prima flowers, American Crafts Alphabet

Well, off to the ballet, and then my class.  Hope you have a great weekend.

Hugs.

Nancy

Happy Bird- Day

I have just a few short minutes to say, "Hi," today.  But, I am sure some of you remember the series of bird houses I did last week.  One of these was for Memories Live On, a local scrapbook store.  Well, I was getting ready to take the little house in, and it just seemed so lonely...missing its bird house friends.  So, since I had some paper left, I decided to make a little card to match.

The card came together so quickly thanks to a sketch from Sassy Lil' Card Sketches.  These new Pebbles Papers were just so cute, and the little embossed birds and flowers were fabulous.

Well, off we go again.

Hugs.

Nancy

Simple, Quick, Fun....Home Decor

I have a quick fun post up at the Your Memories Here blog today that I thought I would share with you.

With spring on its way, I have been spending quite a bit of time sprucing up the house.  I have many plans in the works for my home, but not every room can be revamped each year.  That is why I love quick and simple home decor projects.  With just one or two small pieces, I can change the look of a room.

Recently, on a trip to Michaels, I came across a simple glass bottle with a beautiful bird stopper. With the help of a few beautiful laces, some seam binding dyed with Glimmer Mist, a few pearls, and a single miniature rose.....  I was able to create something special.

I knew immediately that with these few additions it would be perfect filled with delicious bubble bath in my guest bathroom.

So, what have you made lately?

Hugs.

Nancy

Happy Snaps

Over the years I have probably taken hundreds of photos of my children, just random shots that make me happy.  I think these photos are often the best for the single photo layout.  They don't really tell as story, as much as capture a moment in time.  A hairstyle, smile, these are the moments that pass all to quickly.

I wanted to do a quick post to share some of my recent favorites with you.

Sassafrass Mix and Mend patterned papers, chipboard, alphabet.  Prima flowers, butterfly, Tattered Angels glimmer mist in Suede

Crate Paper Restoration papers, chipboard. Prima flowers, lace, alphabet.

Thanks for dropping by!

Hugs.

Nancy