Countdown to Baby...Day 15

I got a little caught up in the "hustle and bustle" of the holidays, but I assure you we have not stopped counting down the last few weeks before our little star is born!  With only five days left-- it's going to be a Very Merry Jasmas for the Collard clan!

The induction has been scheduled for December 26th, and we're all very busy getting things ready for Christmas and Baby!  I've finished the last of the my photo gifts and finally mailed the last of my packages yesterday...cutting it close (as always).  I wrapped the very last of our presents this morning and tucked it under the tree. Still looking here and there for a few stocking stuffers--but in all it appears as though everything is in order for our visit from Santa! I wish I could say the same for our visit from Japser!  One by one I'm checking things off my "Before Baby Comes" list...with no real end in sight, but as most of us mothers know...they come whether we're ready or not...lol!

My nesting instinct kicked in a little late this time around, so I'm just putting the final touches on our "little partridge in a pear tree" nursery!  Here's a sneak peek...but look forward to seeing it in a bit more detail in the New Year!

I hope you all have a Very Merry Christmas and we'll be seeing you soon with pictures of our new family member!

Countdown to Baby...Day 5

It looks like Jasper is going to be our shining star this Christmas....ask any one of us Collard IIIs and we'll say, "All we want for Christmas is a Jasper Baby!"

Countdown to Baby...Day 4

I know it's been a few days...but trust me...we're still here and the countdown is still very much in effect ;)  On Monday my mother helped me to put a little character into Jasper's room, by bringing home these fun wall stickers...

I was not only ecstatic to get out of bed for the 20 minutes it took us to put them up, but even more elated by the realization that very soon our precious little Jasper would be sleeping in that very room!  The small task had such a dramatic effect on the room and on me...because once I had unleashed the creativity that has been bottled up for the past week and a half, then of course all of these "other ideas" came popping into my head!

...Which mainly meant a whole lot more work for my husband over the next few days...I mean if we were going to give Jasper's room a little makeover, then what were we going to do with Caleb's room, so that he would feel appreciated and loved?!

The answer seemed simple enough...CARS!  But three paint jobs and $150 later...I didn't think that my husband would ever go for one of my "ideas" again.  Luckily all he had to see was the look on Caleb's face when he walked into his new room and thankfully all was forgiven!  My contributions were limited to  two hand-made checkered flags and a few hundred free-hand dotted lines around the border...all of which took less then a half-hour, stacked against daddy's two and half days of hard work and labor.  But that's why daddies are so cool right?!  

Countdown to Baby...Day 1

Before November 26th, I had several fun crafting projects dreamed up, a December Daily to finish making and several Holiday activities planned with my family...however all of those things came to an abrupt halt when I spent an unexpected day and half in the hospital the day after Thanksgiving.  Instead for the last week, my life has been filled with the "Adventures in Bedresting."  And while I find I'm still able to enjoy several activities from my cozy queen bed, like digital scrapbooking and watching the archives of several TV shows that I have always wanted to see, but never have time for--I must admit the bulk of my time is spent sleeping.  Adventurous...right?!

However in order to keep my motivation up and to remind me of the prize at the end of this long journey...I've decided to do a little countdown and share some of the small tasks that I'm completing in preparation for our little bundle of joy!

Today I went through all of Caleb's old clothes, and organized them by size, discovering that there was really no need to buy Jasper any new clothes, as he currently has a full drawer of gowns, sleepers, onesies, etc--all washed and ready to go!   I have to admit it was very nostalgic looking through all of Caleb's baby clothes, and perhaps just what I needed to remind me of all the special memories still waiting to made with our second son!

From My Playlist: A New Challenge from Biograffiti!

As is usual with every holiday season, I've over-extended myself with projects and to-dos, crafting and family fun!  But when I saw this super fun challenge...I had to add one more "MUST DO" onto the pile.  Each week my pal, who just so happens to be one of my favorite digi designers, Molly A.K.A Biograffiti, is putting on a challenge--complete with a freebie and prizes...and EVERYONE is welcome to join in the fun!  Visit Molly's blog to find out more about how the challenge works!

This week's challenge was inspired by Susan Tedeschi's "Feel the Love that Music Brings" and Molly has an adorable freebie and an awesome mini kit (just $3.19) available in her shop at Oscraps today!

Looking forward to seeing all of your los! Good Luck with the challenge!

Guest Designer for Aja Abney!

I am so excited to be working with Aja Abney's designs for the month of November, in this new capacity...though most of you know I'm no stranger to her products!  I have long been inspired by her work and now I'm just thrilled as can be, to join her design team for the next month!

Also featuring assorted elements by Biograffiti, ErinINK and Lauren Reid 

Aja's products can be found regularly at Oscraps and at Scrapbook Bytes--and this month you can also find her Guest Designs at CatScrap! I am absolutely IN LOVE with her latest collab kit with Fiddlette Designs, Imagine Childhood and I know you will be too!

A Little Bit of Digidoo!

A few of my fav digi los from this month!

Using ErinInks "Inkblot No. 9" and Kitty Designs "Signs of Love" Kit  

Featuring ErinINK's "Inkblot No. 11" and SD Designs "On The Road" Kit  

Using Biograffiti's "Four Play No. 1" and Aja Abney's "A New Day"  

Featuring Biograffiti's "Around the Way No.2" & One Little Bird Collab "Wildflower"

Take a Peek!

Here's a peek at October's Crazy Daisy Main Kit and Mini!

While I Was Scrapping!

This past weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to join a group of fantastic ladies and teachers at the ScrapVegas Retreat, co-hosted by Tami Taylor from Scrap This Kit and Debbie Hodge at Get It Scrapped!. Unfortunately I got more talking done than scrapping (which is sometimes the case!), but what I valued most from this experience was the friendships that were formed and the lessons that were learned!

On Friday we had a full day of classes and learned awesome techniques from fabulous teachers like Dina Wakley,  Katrina Kennedy, and Michelle Houghton. Here's a look at what we were up to:

Tami had this fun mosaic mat for us to make!

Dina Converted us all to the Inky Fingers Cult...

I wish you could see what some of the other ladies

 were up to with their mists...absolutely beautiful!

I've always had difficulty taking partial photos of faces,

but with Katrina's help and Michelle's beauty...how could I go wrong!

And Katrina spilled the beans on how to get that

beautiful creamy look in your water photos!

Thanks to all of the wonderful teachers and to our fabulous hostess Tami for making this a weekend to remember!

Things Are About to Get Crazy!

Are you ready for a peek at this month's Crazy Daisy Kit, featuring a fabulous array of school themed embellies and fresh colored papers!  Well ready or not...here you are!

So unfortunately my son is not quite ready for school yet...but thats okay I still put these beautiful papers and embellies to great use!  Check out the Crazy Daisy Blog and Gallery this month for some inspiration from myself and the other Crazy Daisies.

Have You Heard The News!?

Not only has Erin Clayton, designer for ErinINK moved shop to Memory Scraps this past month, but she is also this month's Guest Designer for Songbird Avenue's September Charity Kit: Everyday Moments!  So far Songbird Avenue has raised over $40,000 for 27 charity organizations throughout the United States and the September Kit's proceeds will be donated to The Cancer Research Institute . This kit is filled with fun colors and beautiful patterns and elements that will ONLY be available for the month of September!

She's at it Again...

Biograffiti has another wonderful template album available and I must admit...I am in LOVE with it. You can buy it now for 20% off thru Thursday, or visit the Biograffiti blog for three ways--that's right THREE--that you can win this entire album set!

With 21 pages of fabulous templates that offer ample journaling, plenty of room for photos and a clean yet fun design, this set is perfect for individual layouts or for a large collection.

Just a Peek...

Here's just a tiny peek at what I've been up to with my Crazy Daisy kit this month!  With so many fun colors and embellishments to work with...once I sat down with it, the inspiration just started flowing!  An excellent SUMMER kit if you're looking for a coordinated kit+mini album, to get all of those "fun in the sun" pics onto pages!

To see what the rest of the "Crazy Daisies" are up to or for a closer look at the August kit visit the Crazy Daisy website! Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Make Your Own Invites and Announcements Using Your Digital Templates

By Amy Kingsford

Storyboard Template by Coffee Shop Actions

Making your own digital invitations, announcements and greeting cards can be simple, inexpensive and speedy…especially when you use helpful tools such as digital templates, that most of us digital scrapbookers already have on hand!

My favorite multi-purpose templates on the market right now are Biograffiti’s Gridlocked No. 1 and Gridlocked No. 2 template sets—perfect for everything from mini albums, wall art, invitations  and more!  Each set contains 15 layered templates and best of all you can use these in your scrap for hire projects too!

Now lets take a look at how simple it really is to convert any digital template into your very own invite, in  just a few simple steps.

1. Choose a template that is suited to the project you’re working on and open it in Photoshop, I have chosen “Template #11, from Biograffiti’s Gridlocked No. 1.

2. Next click on the “Image Tab” at the top left of the screen and select “Resize.”  Remove the checkmark from the “Constrain Proportions” box and then make sure your resolution is suited for the project you are creating.  (Note: If its something that will be printed out your resolution should be set at 300, if its being published to the web, set it to 72).  Then finally enter the finished measurements for your project and click “OK.”

3. Now your template should be resized to suit the project you are working with.  Newer versions of Photoshop are content aware and can change the size of a file without distorting the overall image, however if you are working with an older version of Photoshop then you may want to do some tweaking to make sure you are happy with the final proportions of your project.

Papers and Elements from Emily Powers Moonlight Revelrie and Expectantly Yours Kits

4. Next clip the papers of your choice to the template, and add your elements and finishing touches.  In these particular templates from Biograffiti she includes a number key to aid you in your design.  you’ll want to delete that key before saving and printing.

5. Now you’re all  ready to print, address and send your invites  in the mail!

For more great templates and quick hybrid projects Visit Biograffiti's Shop at Oscraps!

What I've been up to...

So I'm sure you all read my previous post about embarking on the new adventure of being a stay at home mom!  Who knew being a SAHM was so much more demanding then being a full time mommy with a part-time job?  At least that's what it seems like sometime.  But I've certainly had fun adjusting to the waters!

This July has been a busy one!  With all of the hiking and camping and swimming and playing...I've barely had time to breathe...let alone get my scrappy on!  However I have had a few opportunities to be creative this month and now that I have a moment to myself I'd like to share what I've been up to.

Here's a look at this month's Crazy Daisy Kit and all of the fun I had with it!

Lamb Days 2010

 K is for Kissable

Carefree

Star Light, Star Bright

Music Major

And here's a few pictures of the July Mini too!

This month I also had the wonderful opportunity to visit my husband's family and take some photos of my beautiful sister-in law and her fiance for their engagement photos! And while I was originally very nervous about my first photo shoot that did not involve my favorite two year old...I think we all had a lot of fun and I was quite pleased with the way the photos turned out too.  Here are just a few of my favorites...aren't they an adorable couple?!

Well there you have it...this month has been far from a productive scrappy month for me...but as you can see I'm still alive and kickin'! 

Cookies, Pajamas and Smiles: This is My Life

“While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.”

Happy Fourth!

We celebrated most of our festivities earlier in the week as Jake works over this weekend....so I celebrated the Fourth a little differently this year...but I definitely had just as much fun!

 Instead of hot dogs and fireworks, my Fourth of July was more represented by glitter and glue.  I celebrated by taking my much anticipated July Kit from Crazy Daisy out of the box and having some fun!  If you haven't ordered your July Kit, you should hop on over and grab one.  This kit is the perfect compliment to all of your holiday pictures!  And don't forget to stop by the Crazy Daisy blog over the next month to see how all of the Daisies used their kits and for great tips and tutorials from the Crazy Daisy Team, including some ideas from me on using paint in your layouts!

Some Great News!

Creative Juices No. 16 Template by Biograffiti and Expectantly Yours Kit by Emily Powers, both available at Oscraps.

I am happy to announce that my husband and Caleb and I are expecting an addition to our family in the next six and a half months.  My due date is Jan. 8th!  And though we're hoping maybe our little one decides to make a slightly early arrival so that we can avoid paying two deductibles...AGAIN...most importantly we are hoping for a health baby!  While Jake is crossing his fingers for a little girl (ok I am too) we won't know for another ten weeks! 

As if that news isn't exciting enough I am also happy to share that this will be my last week at work!  And then I will be able to stay home with my beautiful son and work on replacing Daddy as his favorite parent! And while Jake has left some big shoes to fill, I'm certainly going to try! 

And my final piece of good news...I am also going to be working on putting together a class for Get It Scrapped over the next month or so!  GIS has been my online home now for a year and a half and I am so excited to be able to contribute to it in this capacity.

A Little Crazy...

So things have been a little crazy lately...and I can't believe its been more than two weeks since I last updated my blog!  Between my crazy work schedule and potty training and summer activities and yard work and all of my scrappy obligations...I guess it got pushed to the back burner!  But here's a little bit of this month's Crazy Daisy Kit to make up for it!  If you haven't got yours yet, you'll wanna hurry over!  This month's kit is full of fresh, fun colors for summer, not to mention my favorite mini yet!  Check out what I've done with Kaisercraft's Beyond the Page Journal, included in June's Kit!

This month's kit also has two great alphas, plenty of beautiful embellishments, and a great combination of papers, to help you really make those layouts shine!

Check out Crazy Daisy's blog over this month for great layouts from the Crazy Design Team, fun tutorials, and some ideas I'll have for you on using your packaging from this month's kit in your scrapbooking layouts!