Cookie Day!

So so sorry ....been forgetting my blog lately!  Cookie day today with my niece Reyanna.  I had to take a break here.......have some coffee and regroup and see what we're going to tackle next.

Bark, sugar cookies, snickerdoodles, holiday mice and more.  Tons of fun!

Reyanna learning to zest a lemon.  More zest on the counter than in the bowl.  But that's ok...she's having fun and learning at the same time!

 

Chocolate bark.  YUMMY!  Too tempting for me so all of these - 8 batches are going to folks outside of my home.  I don't want that stuff around here.....way too dangerous!

 

These holiday mice are way too cute!!!!  Seriously......I've had such a hard time with mice this fall getting into my house and driving me nuts, but I just love these mice.....too cute!!

 

And the baker herself.....miss Reyanna.....messy....messy....messy girl today!  Got to run.  We still have sugar cookies to roll, bake, and decorate and a batch of snickerdoodles to get in the oven.  School night for her - work night for me - so I really need to get in gear and finish up here.  If you're good - you may end up with some of these goodies under your tree on Christmas morning!

 

A new Thanksgiving tradition....I'm hoping!

I think I'm going to start a new tradition.....doing a Thanksgiving day Turkey Trot with two of my nieces.  Registered us today and picked up our numbers, timing chips, and shirts.  WOOHOO!!

My first 5K - our first 5K - the 37th Annual Turkey Trot in Derry.  Proceeds to benefit local food pantries.  I'm so excited!!

   

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

A free class by Jessica Sprague - can't beat this!!!

Check this out my crafting friends - Jessica does awesome classes and this one is free!  Guess what I'll be doing on November 29th?  Just click on this link to register for the class.

 

It's beginning to look like Christmas!

Just a tease.....guess what I'm working on today?

Prepping, cooking, and rambling thoughts.

A big part of my success in my weight loss journey has been to plan. Plan, plan, plan.  I just know that if I do not plan my menu for the week on Saturday and get my grocery shopping done on the weekend, it most likely won't be a good weight loss week.  I'll grab for the easiest thing when I'm trying to put together my lunches in the morning or the quickest and maybe not so healthiest things when I get home from work.  But if I plan?  I just feel more in control and know that I can make good choices when I am putting together my meals.  Part of my plan is to try to get a dish or two cooked up on the weekends so I can just pull from them during the week.  Today I did just that. 

I made this beautiful carrot soup.  I haven't made carrot soup in over 10 years I think.  I forgot I even had this recipe.  But I found it again last week and just couldn't wait to try it again.  It's spiced just right with a nice touch of ginger, sauted onion and garlic, and I even added a bit of chopped apple this time to give the soup a little more sweetness.  All I can say is - YUMMY!  Seriously a nice fall soup!  Pair it with a salad and a nice crusty loaf of bread and you'll have a great dinner for any night of the week. I know this week I'll be grabbing the soup for lunches for work, pairing it with a nice salad and I'll be all set.

While I was boiling the carrots for the soup, I decided to roast up some veggies too.  They pair well with almost anything and I'll grab from them all week for lunches or dinners.  I just grabbed some veggies that I had in the frig - you really can use any combo - cut in uniform cubes, toss them with some olive oil, oregano, and basil.  Roast in the oven at 350° for 30 - 40 minutes and enjoy all week.  It's month end at work this upcoming week so I know I'll probably be in for some late nights.  But with my roasted veggies all set to go, I can just grab a Minute Ready to Serve brown & wild rice, pair it with my veggies, and I have a great quick meal for those late work nights.  I can pair some leftover chicken with the roasted veggies as well and have another quick easy dinner. 

I love experimenting with my menus and trying to come up with meals that will keep me interested in my weight loss journey.  Earlier this week I was running short on time one morning and was in a bit of a panic because I really hadn't thought out yet what I was bringing to work for lunch.  But I just grabbed a leftover breast of chicken, some leftover brussel sprouts, tossed them with some tomato, mushroom, avocado, and balsamic vinegrette and had a yummy lunch!  Seriously I thought I was pushing it throwing it all in one bowl and hoping it would taste good.  But you know what?  It not only tasted good - it was awesome!  I never really thought to throw cold brussel sprouts in a salad before, but it worked.  I'll be duplicating this one again for sure.

 

Oh and as I walked by the bathroom mirror this week, I caught a glimpse of myself and had to stop, back up and look again.   I thought "seriously?" - is that me in that mirror?  I look so much thinner than just a month or two ago.  I had to back up and look again and marvel in how little changes in my meal planning and being committed are really paying off.  Or is it just those jammies that are making me look thin?  If that's the case I think I'll wear those every day - all day!

Down 29.2 lbs, an eighth of a pound shy of 1/3rd of the way to my goal.  And trust me...that 1/8th of a pound is being a bugger!  I want to see 30 pounds....like soon!  But I'm not giving up!  I knew full well at the beginning, back in April, I had a lot of weight to lose.  But if I didn't just take it one day at a time, it could have been overwhelming.  So I'm taking it one day at a time and I'm getting there.  Slowly but surely I am making my way to a healthier, thinner me!  Does knowing I have almost 60 pounds left to lose scare me?  Absolutely!!  But I'll get there - I know I can and I know I will!  I'm not "dieting" - in fact I don't think I've even said that word since April.  I'm making lifestyle changes that will help me reach my goal and maintain a healthier weight.  That's the important part - and I'm so glad that I'm finally making some "important" choices.

Scrapping - love it!

Ok - I know - it's been a while since I updated my blog.  Just busy, busy lately.  But I've got a few pages to share today.  Scrapped yesterday with some great scrapping buddies.  Didn't get a lot done, but had a blast.  I think I had 8 or 9 pages planned.  I only finished 2 12x12 layouts and a couple of 8x8 quick layouts for my weight loss album.  But you know what? I had so much fun and I love the layouts I did complete - so I'm happy!

This one below is of my niece Reyanna happy with her strawberry pancakes from last weekend when she had a sleepover at my house.  We had so much fun - she always makes me smile!  As I was driving to work this week I heard this line in a song - Oh you make me smile  - and I thought - PERFECT for a title for a page for her. 

This layout below is of one of my other nieces, Kaitlin.  She was such an awesome model a bit ago during a photo shoot I did with her.  What a beautiful girl!  I just love my torn tree and "Owl" always love you Kaitlin!!

 

Thanks for looking - have a great Sunday!!!

Well hello my favorite pants!

So glad I decided to clean out the cedar chest today and see if there was anything in there that would fit.  Trying to update my wardrobe as my numbers are declining on the scale.

Well hello favorite green pants!  I haven't seen you in years!  I'm not only glad we met again today, I'm ecstatic that you actually zip and button!  A little snug but you zip and button!  Another week or two and you'll be fitting more comfortably and I'll be able to wear you when I wish.  I've missed you like you'll never know.   I've always loved your olive green color, your soft feel.  Oh I can't wait to wear you again!

 

 

 

 

Stranger in My Mirror

 

Someone new has moved into my house and I'm not so sure I like her.  Who you ask?  Read below.......she needs to move out because she is annoying the heck out of me!!!  Need a roommate???

 

 

Stranger In My Mirror

© Rose Madeline Mula

 

Please be careful.

This person has found her way into my house and could also get into yours.

 

A very weird thing has happened.  A strange old lady has moved into my house.  I have no idea who she is, where she came from, or how she got in.  I certainly did not invite her. All I know is that one day she wasn't there, and the next day she was.

She is a clever old lady and manages to keep out of sight for the most part, but whenever I pass a mirror I catch a glimpse of her.  And, whenever I look in the mirror to check my appearance, there she is hogging the whole thing, completely, obliterating my gorgeous face and body. This is very rude!  I have tried screaming at her, but she just screams back. The least she could do is offer to pay part of the rent, but no.

Every once in a while, I find a dollar bill stuck in a coat pocket, or some loose change under a sofa cushion, but it is not nearly enough. 

I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I think she is stealing money from me. I go to the ATM and withdraw $100, and a few days later, it's all gone!  I certainly don't spend money THAT fast, so I can only conclude the old lady is pilfering from me. You'd think she would spend some of that money to buy wrinkle cream.

And money isn't the only thing I think she is stealing. Food seems to disappear at an alarming rate -  especially the good stuff like ice cream, cookies and candy. She must have a real sweet tooth, but she'd better watch it, because she is really packing on the pounds.

I suspect she realizes this, and to make herself feel better, she is tampering with my scale to make me think I am putting on weight too.

For an old lady, she is quite childish. She likes to play nasty games, like going into my closets when I'm not home and altering my clothes so they don't fit.

And she messes with files and papers so I can't find anything.  This is particularly annoying since I am extremely neat and organized.

She has found other imaginative ways to annoy me.  She gets into my mail, newspapers and magazines before I do and blurs the print so I can't read it.

And she has done something really sinister to the volume controls on my TV, radio and telephone. Now, all I hear are mumbles and whispers.

She has done other things - like make my stairs steeper, my vacuum heavier and all the knobs and faucets harder to turn. She even made my bed higher so that getting into and out of it is a real challenge.

Lately, she has been fooling with my groceries before I put them away, applying glue to the lids, making it almost impossible for me to open the jars.

She has taken the fun out of shopping for clothes. When I try something on, she stands in front of the dressing room mirror and monopolizes it.  She looks totally ridiculous in some of those outfits, plus she keeps me from seeing how great they look on me.

Just when I thought she couldn't get any meaner, she proved me wrong.  She came along when I went to get my picture taken for my driver's license and just as the camera shutter clicked, she jumped in front of me.

I hope she never finds out where you live. I really do!

© Rose Madeline Mula

Please visit her site at:

http://www.seniorwomen.com/

 

Too hysterical!!!  I laughed my a** off this morning when I got the above in an email from a friend.  Was I laughing because I can SOOOOOOOOOOO relate to some of this??? ABSOLUTELY!!!!   

A new breakfast food

Oh how I've been ignoring my poor blog lately!  But I have news!  I tried a new breakfast food today and it was actually good.  Now don't go thinking I'm crazy, but I have for MANY years NOT liked this particular food.  In fact just the thought of it disturbed me and the smell of it can make me gag.  But I know it's supposed to be really healthy for me and since I'm on this health kick and trying to really make better choices with my food, I decided today to make a HUGE change and try this food again. 

I was at my sister's last night and saw it in her closet and thought - hhhmmm?  I should give that a try again.  So I stole a package from her and after delaying this morning to go make it, finally got up from my desk at work and headed to the kitchen.  I was going to get beyond this obstacle.  I figured if I can be so disciplined to have lost almost 30 pounds since April, I can get beyond this simple silly obstacle.  Now before you think I'm silly over a simple breakfast food, you need to understand there's a long history to my hatred of this food.  I really don't want to make my Mom feel bad, but let's just say she had 10 kids to feed and this particular food was a staple in my house for breakfast growing up and I just DID NOT LIKE IT but had to eat it for breakfast a lot.  Once I was out on my own I swore I would never eat it again and I haven't.  I did try to get past this a few years ago, but could only bring the spoon to my mouth and smell it and that was enough for me.  It was gross!!  I still gagged and I just decided then that I was destined to never like or eat it again.

Today though was different. I just did it....mixed it up....it smelled ok...I thought I could get through it.  That was until I got distracted at my desk and went back to find my breakfast cold.  And trust me cold is not what you want with this food!  Y.U.C.K!!!!  But I was determined to not throw it out.  I was going to get past this - TODAY.  So off I went to the kitchen again and microwaved it for about a minute and back to my desk I went.  And about 2 minutes later - YEAH!!! - I had had my first bowl of OATMEAL in, I'd have to say, 30 34 years!  It wasn't so bad.  I did gag once or twice but just pushed on.  Actually it was pretty good and knowing it is a healthy choice for my weight loss plan, I may just add it to my grocery list this week!

OMG!  If I can get past this issue I've had for 30+ years - I can do anything!! 

 

Ooh la la!

Some awesome items I have my eyes on....love them!!  Now to just make the darn doctor appointment to get the skin tags off my neck so I can wear necklaces and I'll be all set....LOL!

They all come from bel kai designs and I'm really loving their stuff. I know for sure I owe myself one as a treat for meeting a goal I had set.  Now to justify getting the others??  Hhhmmm?  I'll have to think of something?!

Love the message on this one:

 

Love the birdie on this one:

 

 

Makes me think of the ocean and being peaceful:

 

 

Umm hello?  Another birdie....love it!

 

I think my Asian roots draw me to this one:  LOL!

 

 

And this one - it is just absolutely beautiful and feminine!  But I just may have to buy a cute lacy blouse to wear with it...LOL!

 

Tales from the Teddy

Now you know this photo has to go on a Tales from the Teddy page!  It just has to!  I just need to come up with a clever title and some cute journaling.  How darn cute is he squishing that Eddy as he slept?  Poor Eddy ....he really did endure some tough times with his boy.

I cleaned out a storage unit this past weekend and found a whole box of photos I forgot I even had!  I'm so excited because for the longest time I thought I was such a bad mommy because I couldn't find any photos of my son on Halloween.  I know he dressed up every year....why didn't I take pictures?  Well I found at least one year's worth of Halloween photos yesterday...yeah!  

This photo above was one I found and I just love it!  Just look how much he loved that Eddy Teddy!  Please don't ask why he was sleeping like that on his pillows.  I don't know...he was a crazy, but oh so loveable kid!

2nd Grader...growing up too fast!

Scrapping again today and loving it!  Did this layout below for the American Craft Back To School challenge.  I am loving all the American Crafts goodies.  My Thicker collection is out of control.  But I think my Flair collection is ever more out of control.  I love those things!  Something about them just makes me think of my teenage years and the cool pins we used to collect then.  Love them and like to find a place for at least one on every layout.

This layout is of my niece, Reyanna.  Love this girl!  I can't believe she started 2nd grade this year.  I swear it seems like just yesterday that she came into this world.  Where does the time go?

Love you Reyanna!

 

American Crafts supplies used:

Backyard Collection paper - Drip

Backyard Collection paper - Flutter

Patterned Chipboard - MyHouse

Flair Badge - Made With Love "Smile"

Thickers - Delight foam letter stickers

Pebbles Inc Twitterpated "Love You" rubon

Tales from the Teddy

I've updated all my layouts for the "Tales from the Teddy" album to include all the journaling now.  Check it out!  I was cracking myself up today reading all the journaling.  I am one crazy lady!  LOL!  Here's one I was just dying over...LOL!  Get it? Dying over?  LOL!  Journaling is below the layout.

Journaling:
I recently discovered what the fireplace-like smell is in my neighborhood. I've only lived here for 3 years and couldn't figure out what the smokey smell was even in the middle of summer. Who the heck would be burning in a fireplace in June & July? I smell it up here on the shelf and it's even worse when Mama has the fans on in the summertime. I heard Mama talking on the phone the other night telling someone she finally realized, after 3 years, that the smell was coming from the crematorium only a few doors down from where we live! I smell dead people!! I guess that would counteract the Chinese food from the corner restaurant and the sausage & eggs smell from the diner around the corner. Dead people?? I smell dead people!!

 

Don't think I'm crazy - it's just really fun doing these "Tales from the Teddy"pages!

She is.....spunky, fun, smart, and beautiful!

I went to visit my brother and his family today and my niece agreed to do a photo shoot with me.  She was so much fun!  She loved it and was quite the little model.  I hardly had to do any work at all.  She came up with most of the poses and had so much fun doing it. 

Check out some of these photos:  Kaitlin's Photo Shoot 

I love this one below of my brother and his girlfriend, Holly and the next of my brother's two girls, Kayla & Kaitlin.  They are both so beautiful and such fun, awesome girls.  Kaitlin agreed to do more photo shoots with me so I can practice a bit more with my SLR camera.  She's such a great kid.  Thanks Kaitlin!

 

Too many decisions!

Did you know that the average person makes over 250 decisions about food each day?!!  Seriously studies show that the average person makes over 250 food decisions each day and very few of them have anything at all to do with true hunger.  WOW!  That's a lot of decisions to make regarding food.  Now you're probably thinking that you don't make that many decisions about food each day, but stop and think about that.  First thing in the morning you make a decision whether or not you're having coffee upon waking right?  Decision 1!  Once that decision has been made, then you have to decide cream or not?  Decision 2.  Then do you want something with that coffee?   Yes or no?  Decision 3.  Then do you eat what you want with the coffee or do you hold off to have your breakfast a bit later?  Decision 4.  Oh and every time you pick up the coffee mug to take a sip?  Yup you got it - another decision you've made about food.  All of these decisions within probably your first half hour upon waking.  See where I'm going?  It is quite possible that we do make over 250 decisions a day about food.

I pulled this little fact from an article I read in this month's Weight Watcher magazine and at first was astounded at that number.  I seriously thought it had to be a typo.  Seriously - 250 decisions every day regarding food?   Do I eat breakfast or not today?  Do I pack a lunch or not?  What's for lunch?  Do I bring leftovers from last night or a fresh new lunch?  Do I start something in the crock pot for dinner before leaving for work or not? Once at work, do I want a coffee or not when I get there?  Cream or no?  Do I eat my yogurt plain or toss in some granola?  When do I eat that yogurt?  As soon as I get to work or do I hold off a bit and have it around 9?  Lunch?  When's lunch?  Do I eat before the meeting or after?  Do I stop to actually eat my lunch paying attention to what I'm doing or do I work through lunch and get through some emails?  Snack time - do I eat the fruit I brought with me or a handful of nuts I have stashed in my cube locker?  Do I want an afternoon coffee?  Yes or no?  What flavor?  Cream or not?  The afternoon is dragging and I'm thinking about making sure I have a good dinner.  Do I have stuff at home for dinner or do I need to make a stop at the market on the way home?  What do I buy?  Just stuff for tonight's dinner or do I need anything else for later in the week?  Once I get home - do I start dinner right away or not?  Do I have what I had planned on my menu or do I deviate?  Salad with dinner or not?  After dinner - do I stick with the snack I had planned or do I go for something else?  Do I go to the kitchen for that second "goodie" while watching TV?  Do I really want that second snack?  Do I really need it or am I just bored?  Then if I do give in, I question myself for the rest of the evening.  Why did I give in?  Will I kick myself tomorrow because I didn't follow my plan?  Why do I eat sometimes without thinking?  Why can't I have willpower at night sometimes when I'm watching TV?  Should I not watch Food Network at night?  Does that tempt me?  Time for bed and sometimes all I can think about is if I have everything I need in the kitchen for my breakfast and lunch tomorrow.  Can't go to work without a lunch because, oh ya, then I'd have to make a decision on where to go for lunch!

OMG!  Do you see?  Decisions, decisions, all day regarding food.  No wonder why my head feels like it's going to explode sometimes!   I just hope I'm making the right decisions!

Beating the Demon

I’m sitting here watching a DVR’d repeat Oprah show that was
on earlier this year discussing the book Women, Food and God (by Geneen Roth).  In the segment right before the show
starts Oprah shares little snippets of women discussing their battles with food
and one woman says “It’s a losing battle and I’m never going to win it”.   How that used to ring so true for me and how
I felt about my battle with weight.  I have
ALWAYS, since as long as I can remember, struggled with my weight and have
struggled with feelings of inadequacies because of my weight.   But
recently something clicked for me woke me up and made me realize that
only I could conquer this demon, that I need to put myself first, and so that is the journey I began a couple of
months ago.   Just this morning as I was
ironing clothes for work, a pair of slacks a size smaller than what I had worn
just a few weeks ago, and I digress – but I got them on clearance at Fashion
Bug for only $3.49! - I remember thinking to myself that I “got it” this time;
that I KNOW that I am going to
conquer this demon.  I could see in my
head just what I would feel like and look like a year from now and it felt damn
GOOD!  Visualization works well for me
and I find myself falling back on that more and more as I continue down this
road of being healthier.  I found it so
ironic that the woman’s comment today on the taped Oprah show was exactly how I
used to feel and that just today I had realized that I do not feel that way
anymore.  Isn’t it just crazy how this
universe works?   

It’s not an easy journey and I have had more than my “slip
ups” this past week.  But I just have to
remember that each day is a new day that I can be successful.  I cannot beat myself up about slipping and
maybe eating something I shouldn’t have eaten. 
It’s all about moderation and making lifestyle changes and if
occasionally I slip up – well that’s life – I just have to remember to start
the next day with more determination and remember one of my favorite quotes – “Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the
quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow.” -
Mary Anne Radmacher

Now I need to get back to the show and watch the rest of
it.  If it’s any good, I may just pop on
over to Amazon and purchase the book.  It
might be good to read it to gain some additional motivation.   Chow for now – I need to go get my
motivation to carry me through the rest of the week.

On my way back.

What a couple of weeks it has been!  A trip to the ER, stitches, a sling, multiple trips to urgent care (one of which was not for the finger), prescriptions - LOVE the vicodin, bandages, 4 days of missed work and no more sick time for this year left, etc.  Just a crazy couple of weeks.  The finger is well on the mend and I can't wait to get back to scrapbooking, photography, and blogging.  Been a little hard to type with only 4 fingers on the right hand.  But the stitches came out tonight and although it still is very tender and sensitive to use it to type, I'm trying.  Look for a weekend post sometime tomorrow or Sunday.  For now - a few photos from my hard drive.  Can't show you a new photo of my on-the-mend finger because now my camera is broken and I haven't felt like figuring out what the heck is wrong with it.   But don't ever use one of these things without a guard....NOT a good idea or you could end up...............

 

like this:

 

and this below.  One has got to take care of their fingers.....they come in handy sometimes!

 

Off to start my weekend!  Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Fingers, frustration, and friends

I never realized how hard it can be to do everything with your left hand when your right-handed.  Ended up at urgent care last night because my cut finger was just throbbing and did not look right (see Monday's post).  I am so thankful I followed my gut and went because things weren't right.  I felt like my finger was about to burst open.  It was so painful yesterday afternoon; more so than I thought it should have been.  There was just so much pressure built up in there.  The doctor had to remove a few stitches to relieve the pressure and put me in a sling so I would keep it elevated.  I guess working yesterday and even using the index finger on that hand to type didn't help.  I'm now out of work for the rest of the week per doctor's orders.  I have a follow up Saturday and I'm hoping things improve by then so I can be released to go back to work next week.  It's month end and only my 2nd with this team and I really don't want them to have to cover all my tasks.  So I am following doctor orders and icing, elevating, and resting the finger/hand.  I do not want to lose this fingertip. Hey it's the middle finger on my right hand and under some circumstances I really need that finger! No I'm not flipping anyone off; just showing you my pretty finger.  Be thankful it's covered; it's gross under that bandage.  And yes I know i look tired - I am!  Even with vicodin last night before bed, I was still up 3 or 4 times either tossing and turning or for bathroom trips.  Arrrgggh!

 

I didn't realize how frustrating it would be to clean and re-dress this wound by myself.  So very frustrating and it clearly does not look as pretty as the doctor's wrap job and the Neosporin doesn't work well when you drop it on the floor and then proceed to step on it when you get up!  ARRGGHHH!!!!  I'm frustrated that I'm not good doing things with my left hand, that it's hard to shower, blow dry my hair etc.  But I know it could be worse so I try to remember that.

Thank goodness for good friends.  My friend Kim went out of her way last night and insisted she take me to urgent care.  I really didn't want to inconvenience her and told her she really didn't have to; that I was very capable of driving myself, but after thinking about it, her offer made sense seeing I had been taking the Vicodin all day.  Well thank goodness she drove me because I wouldn't have been able to drive with the sling and after what the doctor did to my finger removing some of the stitches I was feeling a little queasy by the time the appointment was done.  Oh - maybe that's also because I hadn't eaten dinner before I headed to urgent care either.  But anyways - thank you so much Kim!  You are truly a great friend and for that I am so very grateful! 

This post was typed all with my left fingers - please excuse any spelling/typing errors.  I believer I caught them all, but if I didn't - oh well! 

Mandolins and fingertips...not a healthy mix!

So for the past 65 days I have packed a healthy lunch for work everyday!  Well for day 66....today....I had great intentions and was going to have a nice cucumber salad with my lunch, but this little contraption below spoiled my plans.  OK...so it was me that really wasn't thinking and forgot to put the guard on my cucumber and went slicing away envisioning the nice crispy cukes I would be having for lunch until I almost took my fingertip off too!  A hospital trip, eight stitches, tetanus shot, a splint, Keflex, and some Vicodin might just be enough to make me remember to use that guard in the future!  It's after lunchtime now and I can't even think about the nice crispy cucumbers.  OWWEE!!!  

Anyone want to make me lunch tomorrow??

Note to self:  Mandolins come with a guard for a reason!

  
 

 

New Home for my Thickers.

I'm finally getting around to reorganizing my scrap room and I'm loving some of the little changes so far.  I've moved my sewing machine up closer to my work space.  I love to stitch on my pages so moving it a bit closer will allow me to do that more often. My Cricut is set up and ready to go and that was ultimately my goal this past weekend.  I really wanted to get that out of the box and set up.  But the best change is this rack below.  It's my "piece of the Island" when my favorite scrapbook store, Scrapbook Island closed.  I saw this dish rack in the kitchen of the store and thought that would be so great to store my Thicker letters.  My friend, the owner, said I could take it as my "piece of the Island" and I LOVE it!  Thanks Camille.  Don't my Thickers look so nice now, all organized by color?  I love that my button jars now have a nice new home atop the shelf too. 

 

Some photos of the other areas in my scrap space:

My new Cricut...love it!  Also my sewing machine up closer to my work space.  It's out and more convenient to use now.

My new shelf that I also got from my LSS.  I really needed this and love that it holds all my baskets full of scrapbooking goodies. Now all I have to do with these is resort them by categories as they once had been.  They've gotten a bit messy over the past year or so.  That's all for now.  I wish I could spend the day up there again today so I can get it finished, but it's off to work today.  Hoping I can spend a couple of hours in the scrap room tonight doing some more organizing. 

Ooh...la...la!

New releases from BasicGrey coming up this week and I am sooooooooooo happy!  I always love their new collections, but this time, I am soooooooo in love!  Check these out - 

Wander - so love this one!  I believe this is the first travel line by BasicGrey and I can't wait to get my hands on some for my travel pages.

 

Jovial -  Holiday line and so pretty!

Pyrus - beautiful fall colors and I L.O.V.E that little birdie!

 

Marjolaine - this one is absolutely beautiful!  I am always drawn to lines with blues and greens so this one just sings to me!

 

And I think my absolute favorite of them all.......Curio.  The colors, the flowers and butterflies and birds.....oohlala!!!   July 27th can't come soon enough!!   Have to go make some room in my scrap room for these collections.  I saw the Fancy Pants releases yesterday and loved those as well.  I'll highlight those maybe later today.  Seriously have to get back to the scrap room and reorganize for my Cricut and clear some of the clutter that has accumulated up there in the past couple of years.  Out with all the older stuff I probably won't use anymore and more room for some new stuff like............these new releases from one of my favorite scrapbook manufacturers.....BASICGREY!!!!

Dream no small dreams.

Finally had some time to scrap the week before last when I took a vacation day from work and joined some friends for a day of cropping.  Did this page below to document the "beginning" of my weight loss journey.  Sadly I forgot to take them in April, so these photos are from 2 months into the journey.  I have a couple more that I scrapped for my weight loss journey album, but I'll save those to post for another day.  I have to get myself off the couch and upstairs to re-org my scrap room.  It's a mess up there!

 

The Earth is Shaking!!!

Seriously...construction in the middle of the night?  They are repaving an intersection VERY close to where I live and because it is such a busy intersection they have decided to do the repaving at night.  When. I. sleep!  Hello?  Did you know that this machine/vehicle/piece of heavy equipment  below is earth shaking?  Well it is, no matter it be 4:30 a.m, 5 a.m., and now at 9:10 p.m.  I knew they were starting the construction this week and even sat out for a bit and watched with my niece the other night as a big piece of machinery ripped up 1000 feet of cement 6 -8" deep right in front of our eyes.  But to hear this machine below RUMBLE in front of my house at 4:30 in the morning was scary!  Seriously when awoken the other morning at 4:30 I thought that we were having an earthquake.  Took me a few seconds before I remembered the construction happening outside.  The thing is darn loud and right now as it is working outside my house, I am sitting on my couch and my whole house is vibrating and I'm hoping that nothing falls off the shelves in here.  OK...I can't even describe this fully......unbelievable....sounds like it is going to come right through the house.  My only hope is that they will get this work done early enough tonight that I don't have to listen to this as I try to get some sleep tonight.  Here's hoping!

 

  

I made the jump.............

and landed quite nicely!  I finally made the decision to buy one of these below.  My very own Cricut!!  For those that don't know what that is - it's a personal die cutting machine used for scrapbooking, card-making, home decor projects, gifts, etc.  I am going to love this! 

I haven't even taken it out of the box yet, but that's my project for the weekend.  With the cricut bundle I ordered I also got 6 cartridges, Design Studio, and the Jukebox.  Seriously it was such a sweet deal - I couldn't resist! 

On another note - this cutie patootie came to spend an hour or so at Auntie's house last night while her parents were at her brother's basketball game.  Love this kid!  She can come visit me anytime!  Hi Reyanna - Bee loves you!