I've spent most of the day preparing for our Thanksgiving dinner today and reflecting on all I have to be thankful for. I have a wonderful, loving husband, two beautiful children who are my joy, a wonderful, supportive family. I have beautiful friends, both here and on the net. I have been blessed with my dream home in a wonderful neighbor that my children will love growing up in. My husband and I both have steady jobs that provide what we need. I also get to work and stay home with my babies. We are all healthy and thriving. I am a saved, sanctified, filled with the holy ghost christian who is in love with my Savior. He has blessed me with so much more than I deserve. I have so much to be thankful for. We are having Thanksgiving tonight with my family. My family and I have been through a lot the passed few years but I know that we are getting better and moving on to a restored, healed life together. God is so good! I can't thank Him enough for all he's done for me.
Speaking of my cyber friends, I have received tons of kudos from them the passed couple of months. You can view them here and read all of the wonderful comments they have given me on my scrapbook creations:
3 Scrappy Boys
Not A Happy Camper
Scrapbooker's Clubhouse
Boy on a Mission
Remember Dec. 25th 2002

Where the Wild Things Are
Card Set
You all really know how to make a girl feel good! :)
Paper Popsicles and 3scrappyboys both hosted holiday crops the passed two weekends. Here are some creations I made from that:






I also altered these boats to hang on Gavin's wall in his bedroom!

I entered these in the December Guest Designer Contest at Scrapbooker's Clubhouse and won! So, I am their Guest Designer for December. I am so excited! This will be my first time to design with them again since I was on the design team last year! I am so looking forward to it.
Gotta go finish up Thanksgiving preparations for tonight! See you all later. Happy Thanksgiving!

SCRAPBOOKER’S CLUB HOUSE ANNOUNCES:

THE NOVEMBER 2008 “CHALLENGES BY DESIGN” COLLECTION!

November 1, 2008 will bring a “Challenges By Design” Collection to Scrapbooker’s Club House.

We can’t wait to reveal the challenges that the SBCH Design Team has planned for November!

Come over to the Club House and see what the Design Team has in store to challenge you and get your mojo goin’! You’ll be getting layouts done and cards made…Isn’t that what it’s all about?

Come join us and be inspired & challenged: meet new friends, too. We’re the friendliest scrappin’ spot on the ‘net and for your convenience, we have a fully stocked store just stuffed with scrappy goodness!

Here’s where to find us: http://www.scrapbookersclubhouse.com/home.htm

And here’s the Challenge Forum: http://www.scrapbookersclubhouse.com/forum/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=13
The Scrapbooker’s Club House store: http://www.scrapbookersclubhouse.com/oscommerce/catalog/

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Halloween tonight. We took the kids trick or treating last night. With the ball game and my two sisters in nursing school, we decided to get all of our festivities over in one night. We took the kids to family members houses for candy, then took the to the trunk or treat at an area church. They also had the Fall Fest at the Elem. School but we didn't have time to get there before it was over. We ended up at my in-laws house for supper and were all in bed by 9pm! Carley was a tiger, complete with an orange and black tutu, and Gavin was Spiderman, of course! We also took our nephew Matthew. He decided to wear a bloody skeleton mask that scared Gavin the whole night! They all had a great time though!






Aunt Cindy came over Tuesday night and brought a Halloween Gingerbread house for the kids to decorate! Carley was quiet proud of it. As you can tell, their Aunt Cindy spoils them greatly!

Tonight we will be taking it easy and handing out candy to trick or treaters who didn't go last night! Happy Halloween to all!!!!!!

It has been awhile since I've updated! I've been so busy getting stuff ready for the booth we had at the Fall Fest this past Saturday. We really had a lot of and enjoyed meeting everyone. Then, my computer mouse was on the fritz! Bryan fixed it last night, Thank goodness! I am so glad. I've missed all of my cyber friends. So, I am here finally getting Gavin's Birthday party pics uploaded. He had a spiderman party at the park. I wish you all could see him shooting his web! He is soooo funny! He goes around shooting his make believe web at everyone who crosses his path. Here are some pics I took from the party: I am really super excited that we finally got a decent family picture taken!





Today, I get to submit my projects for my opportunity to be Guest Designer at Paper Popsicles. You can view my guest designer gallery starting tomorrow. You definitely want to pick up this kit. I have had a blast working with it. Melissa really knows how to pack a box full of goodies and at prices that can't be beat! Here are a couple of sneek peeks:


I'll be back later to post my projects in full after tomorrow, so be sure and visit again soon! Happy Monday!

Last night, while I was scrubbing Gavin's head (he still gets cradle cap), Gavin's nose started bleeding. Carley walked in because she heard him crying from me scrubbing his head and told me about his nose. I didn't realize it was bleeding at the time. She ran and got him a bath cloth for me to clean him up and was hugging him and talking to him to get him to calm down. His nose has been bleeding for no reason here lately and it really scares Carley. I didn't realize how much until I went to tuck her in later on last night. She was laying in her bed with a sad look on her face. I ask her what was wrong and she said, "Mommy, I just prayed for Gavin. I prayed that God would heal Gavin's nose so it would not bleed anymore. And I'm gonna hold on to my pray real tight cause I know sometimes the devil gets our mind off of our prayers and makes us drop them. But I'm not going to. I'm gonna hold on to my prayer, Momma, cause I know God will answer it." By the time she was finished, I had tears in my eyes. Not just because she loves her brother so much, but because she had reminded me that often times I get discouraged and drop my prayers. I remember some very dear saints of God talking about holding on the horns of the alter until they received their breakthrough. I think sometimes God is sitting up there wondering how bad we really want it. How bad do we want that loved one to be saved or how bad to we want a healing in our marriage? How bad do we want our country saved and our economy to grow? Are we willing to hang on to our prayers and pray without ceasing until we receive our breakthrough? I know I have been wanting to see God do things in my life, for my marriage, for my church, but I haven't made it a priority to pray without ceasing or hold on to my prayers until I received my breakthrough. But, Carley reminded me last night that our time on this Earth is limited and it's time to get serious about what we want to see God do in our lives, in our homes, in our country. It's time to hang on to our prayers and stop letting the devil lie to us until we are to discouraged to hang on anymore. Because actually our prayers are our promises from God. He's already made those promised to us and He is not a God that He would lie. I thank God for my Carley, that she has a love and a belief in God. That she has faith, the child like faith we are all suppose to have to see things change in our lives. I know that from now on I will hold on with all my might, expecting and believing and praying without ceasing for what God has already promised me. I am will also be back to report on Gavin's nose bleeds. I have a feeling that Carley's prayer will be answered!

It was a busy weekend for me this week. Friday night was scrap night. I just wasn't in the mood to scrap and only got one page done! Now I want to scrap and don't have time...Go figure. Saturday morning was Carley's cheer competition. They did such a good job! I am so proud of them. Here's my little cheerleader:




After competition, Mom and I took Carley to her favorite place to eat...McDonald's. We ate outside and she played on the playground. It amazes me how she never meets a stranger. She knew the names of and was playing with all of the kids before we left. She definitely takes after her Daddy. I love it that she can make friends so easily.
Saturday night was the Calendar Girl Pageant. I am not one who is too crazy about pageants. I don't really like that they are judged on beauty and I didn't want Carley to feel like she was not pretty enough if she wasn't picked. It would break my heart if she was upset or felt she was second best. When Carley came to me about wanting to be in the pageant, we had a long talk about it before I let her do it. I explained to her that being in a pageant was about having fun and I didn't want her to be upset or feel bad about herself if she wasn't chosen. She assured me that she wouldn't be upset at all. So, I agreed to let her be in it. So, she asked my nephew Matthew to be her escort. This was the first pageant Carley had been in since she was a baby and I think I was more nervous than she was. She did a great job and she looked so pretty. We had so much fun curling her hair and putting on her make-up.
She really had a great time and wasn't upset at all that she wasn't picked. I was so proud of her. Here are her pics from the pageant:





So, now we have the homecoming parade and Gavin's birthday party to look forward to so I'll be back later this week with more pictures to share with you!

Guess who is Guest Designer at Paper Popsicles for the month of November???? ME!!! I am so excited! I received my e-mail from Melissa this morning. Yay!!!!!! I can't believe it! I love it there and I can't wait to design for them!

I'm sad to say I am not moving on to the next round of Top Designer at BadGirlsKits. :( Oh well, here is my entry anyway:

I am happy to say that my peeps at scrapbookersclubhouse.com still love me! They gave me kudos for my card I made at our Scrappy Island Adventure:

As well as my peeps at 3scrappyboys.com, they still love me, too! I got kudos for my lay-out Under a Shady Tree!

Thanks gals! You all sure know how to make a girl feel good!
I'll be back to post some more of my creations from the crop after cheer practice!
Until then~

Check this out:


You do not want to miss this sweet deal! Stop by the message board while you're at it! Everyone there is sooooo nice and the inspiration is always overflowing! See you at Paper Popsicles

I got Lay-out of the Day over at 3ScrappyBoys.com. I was so surprised! It really made my day!

You can read all the wonderful comments the wonderful ladies gave me on my lay-out here.
Carley cheered her second game last night. I am so proud of her. She is doing such a great job and is really enjoying herself. Her cheer coaches are doing a really great job for their first year. It is so much fun watching them cheer and watching the PeeWee football players play football. I think even Bryan enjoys himself, though he doesn't want to admit it.
Here's some pics of her:





Bryan is a huge Auburn Tigers fan. He had to tell Carley yesterday that it was okay to cheer for another team besides Auburn. She was dead set on supporting her daddy's team and insisted on yelling, "Go Auburn" at the game, instead of "Go Aggies!" Bryan explained to her that Hamilton was the school she attended and she really needed to cheer for them while she was at their ball games and when she grew up and went to college at Auburn, it would be time for to cheer for their team. She is just too funny and when she believes in something, she believes in it with all of heart! So..Go Auburn..I mean, Aggies!

Okay, so I have done something I don't usually do, I have joined the Top Designer Contest at Bad Girls Kits . I don't usually participate in contests because I am so intimidated that my work will suffer by comparison. I don't know what possessed me to start with this one! You will have to stop by and take a look at all of the awesome entries . These ladies literally blow me away! So I took the pludge and here is my first entry for Miss Cari Fennell's Layering Perspectives Class!




Wish me luck and keep your fingers crossed that I make it through to the next round!

Seven years ago today, a horrible tragedy effected our country forever...9/11. It's a day I know I will never forget. I remember sitting with my mom watching the coverage on Fox News. We were glued to the TV in between taking care of our daycare babies. It was so weird because all of our babies were so quiet. They weren't allowed to watch and most of them not old enough to, but it's like they know something horrible was taking place. My heart goes out to all who lost loves ones that day. I know that each 9/11 for them hurts so much worse than it does me. I still cry when I watch movies, documentaries, and commentaries of that horrible day. I worry about what our world is coming to and I don't know what our future holds but I will forever be proud to be an American. Thank you to all who serve or have loved ones who serve our country. I am forever greatful that they risk their lives for my freedom, for our freedom.
I'm proud to be an American where at least I know I'm free
and I won't forget the men who died who gave that right to me.
And I gladly stand up, next to you and defend her still today,
cause there ain't no doubt I love this Land.
GOD BLESS THE USA!!!!

Just wanted to share a really fun site, http://yearbookyourself.com Colby, my nephew, and I played with it earlier. It is hilarious! Here is my yearbook photo:

Isn't that a riot? I just can't stop laughing at it! You have to try it! Can't wait to see yours!

NOTE: I am reposting this which was featured on the Scrapbooker's Clubhouse Blog for their scrappin' green series. Enjoy!

I am always looking for ways to repurpose or reuse an item. Since I am a self proclaimed ribbon addict, there is no shortage of ribbon spoolies at my house. I am also a lover of mini albums. So when I discovered this idea of using ribbon spoolies to create a mini album, founded my Vicki Chrisman, I had to give it a try! This ribbon spoolie album was created for my Mom and hangs proudly in her home!



To create a ribbon spoolie album separate the outer circles from the inner ring, sand the inner ring to remove any leftover glue or paper, then cover all sides with your favorite patterned paper.


Next use tacky glue to attach the inner ring back to the bottom circle, then punch four holes as shown to run your ribbon through, to attach the top circle back to the spool.


Run your ribbon through the holes, tie into bows and you will be ready to embellish!

To complete the album (shown in the top three photos of this article), attach a 12 inch ribbon to the inside bottom of the inner ring using glue. Cut 12 circles the size of the inside of the inner ring and glue the circles front to back with the ribbon sandwiched in between the circles. You will now how 6 circles, front and back, to attach your photos and embellishments to. I also tied a knot in the bottom of the ribbon and added a loop to the lib of the album so I could close the album for display.
It can also be used as a trinket box, as shown.



I also took it one step further and used the top and bottom circles of ribbon spools to create a circle mini album. I covered both fronts and backs of the circles with patterned paper and bound them together with a metal ring embellished with ribbon.


Ribbon spoolies, once taken apart, also make great circle templates.
Thank you so much for letting me share these tips with you today! I hope it gave you new ways to turn a ribbon spoolie that would have otherwise been thrown in the trash can into a treasure!