Layouts To Share

I've tapped some inner mojo and have been rather productive the past two weeks. Today I'm sharing more layouts from 2009 photos.


A trip to Busch Gardens in celebration of my nephew's 5th birthday.  I used a Scrapbook Generation kit with accompanying sketch and added my own embellishments.

A second visit to Busch Gardens a few weeks later with Meg.  This was my Osmond concert trip so it was just the two of us.  We focused on the animals this time, something we rarely do, and had a really nice day.

Our county fair, also in February 2009.  Again, I used a Scrapbook Generation kit but chose not to use their sketch.  I had additional photos I wanted to use so I created two 8x8 pages that will follow this one, back to back, in the album.

Lastly, something a bit different.  This was an evening launch of the space shuttle Discovery as viewed from our backyard.

Thanks for visiting!

Shower Decor

I only recently finished editing the photos of the baby shower that we threw for one of our girlfriends in early September. It was weeks in the making and turned out so cute that I'd like to share some of the decor with you.  But first off, a photo of my beautiful friend.  She's the first grade teacher that I volunteer for every week. The sticker I placed on her tummy is a clue to our theme.

I created this welcome sign on an 11x14 canvas.

Another friend made this sign-in board from foam core.  It was covered in well wishes by the end of the day. We made the ties using my Silhouette electronic die cutter.

Rewinding just a bit, in late August I held what I now refer to as my "minion night".   I had previously die cut components for the decor and we all gathered for an assembly party.  It was quite funny to hear their reactions to all of the tools of "my trade."  One friend remarked that she never knew there were so many ways to glue.  LOL!!!  (Like my plastic cocktail table cloth?)

Here's some of what we made that night....

Cupcake toppers (several layers of die cuts to make these)

A banner made of mustaches and ties.

The girls made these chocolate mustaches.

Beverage bar labels.

A few photos of the final set up...

The Beverage Bar

The tablescape....  (cotton candy!  isn't that cute?!)

My girlfriend and her daughter put this diaper cake together.  LOVE IT!

Her daughter also made this darling mustache cake...

The piece de resistance ...

(We also had a huge buffet of food but it was far too large to fit in one photo.)


Finally, what's a baby shower without a couple of silly games?


How about blindfolded baby diapering...

And no party of ours is ever complete without a drinking game.  *wink* We kept it G rated for the teens.  (Yep, that's me on the right.  Let me tell ya....that ain't easy!)

I ask you...aren't these Golden Nipple Awards hilarious? They were created by the friend who made the onsie sign.  LOVE THEM!

Lots of great food, good drinks, fabulous friends and awesome, awesome gifts. It was a day well worth all of our efforts!

International Coastal Cleanup Day

In honor of International Coastal Cleanup Day this past Saturday, Meg and I joined forces with friends at one stretch of our local beach.  By 9:00 AM there were already so many volunteers cleaning the sands that we decided to tackle the strip of sea grapes that serve to provide a natural barrier between the beach and the parking lots. Oh the disgusting litter one finds there!  

It's no big secret that the north parking lot is a popular hang out for the young people but if one needed proof, it's in that bag.  It was so heavy with glass bottles that we had to make several stops while carrying it back to the starting point.  (The county actually collects and weighs ALL of the trash collected on this day.)

It was great to see so many young people giving back to our community and just as great to hear the many comments of "thank you" from those heading out to hit the surf.  Definitely a win-win for all.

Quick and Easy Cards

I have some new cards to share.  Today's set were all made using the Hero Arts Brush Strokes background stamps along with various sentiment sets.

Very fun and easy to create.  TFL!

2009 and Now

I have three layouts I'd like to share with you today.  The first two were created with photos from 2009.  (Still working my way through the year.)



My seven year old baby enjoying the beach....

and enjoying a root beer float in her (then) favorite nightgown.

That little girl has now turned 12.  Nightgowns have been replaced with old t-shirts/knit shorts and mustaches now hold the place in her heart that flabingos once did ...

*sigh*  Time goes by far too quickly.

More Cheer Photos

Meg had her second game on Saturday.  Her squad is required to be at the field for check-in one hour prior to the start of every game.  We arrived at 3:45. Due to rain delays her 5:00 PM game didn't start until almost 7:00. Then there was overtime.  For those who played WWF with me Saturday afternoon and evening, thank you.  :-)

With all of this time on my hands I became the squad paparazzi.  Because her team has a public Facebook page with lots of team photos, I don't feel that I'm infringing on anyone's privacy by sharing my photos here. (In fact, many of the cheer photos currently on their page are the ones I took last week, posted after they circulated among my friends.)

Here is her squad, minus one who is out with a sprained ankle.  Meg is second from the right.  The two outside girls are high school cheerleader volunteers.

Meg is the back spot for the group on the right.

Again, Meg in the very back ready to catch her in their cradle.

This next one is Meg's very bestest BFF.  Meg is hidden, holding the back of her thigh.  (The second tallest girl gets to balance the tallest.)  Apparently this move is called a Scorpion.

And an action shot.  I'm not sure if Meg was early, late or just the highest but it's a cool photo.

The coaches give out $5 gift cards to the two girls who show the most leadership/spirit during each game.  Me, being the overly enthusiastic crafty volunteer that I am, who LOVES to make more work for herself, offered to create cute little gift card holders.  I was feverishly working on these until just minutes before the game.

When opened, they house a sliding pocket for the gift card.

Four down, twelve to go.  (But well worth it after I heard murmurs that the purses are more popular than the gift cards they hold.)  :-)

Quick and Easy Appetizer

Today I'm sharing of one my "go-to" appetizers.  It's quick, easy and always one of the first to disappear at events.  (I took it to a cheer/football fundraiser we had last night and it disappeared almost instantly.)

For lack of a more creative name, I call it Layered Greek Dip.  It's a wonderful way to dress up pre-packaged ingredients for a yummy, homemade appetizer.

The ingredient measurements will vary on the size of your container but here's what you'll need....

Hummus, prepackaged (or homemade if you're ambitious like my son Jay)
Greek veggie dip, prepackaged (or homemade tahini sauce, again if you're ambitious)
cucumber, chopped
tomato, chopped
red onion, chopped
sliced black olives
feta cheese

For those who like a visual, these are the hummus and dip products I prefer...

To make this 8" cake pan I used one and a half containers of hummus and about 3/4 of the veggie dip.

Spread a generous amount of hummus (3/4" or so) to the bottom of the pan followed by a thinner layer of Greek dip.  Sprinkle your chopped veggies on top, followed by the black olives and then finish it off with the feta cheese. Easy, peasy.

I like to serve the dip with pita and/or pretzel chips.

I had enough hummus leftover to make a small container for myself.  (I say that because no one else eats it here but me.)

As you can see, I just added the leftover ingredients straight to one of the hummus containers.  To save calories I'll eat it with baby carrots.  It would also be good atop of some lettuce and/or fresh spinach.  If you're a hummus lover, you can't go wrong with this one.

(PS....Catherine, you and Jasmine would be great friends.  She tried a black olive that had landed on the floor and immediately spit it out. LOL!!)

First Game

Meg had her first football game on Saturday.  She did an awesome job and really, really enjoyed it.  It made the hour plus trip down south totally worth it.

Excuse the shadow.  I had to shoot through a chain link fence for photos.

I really love how the fence frames her in this shot.

We're enjoying the rest of our long weekend.  Hope you are too!