First & Last Down...

I've finally completed the first and last pages of my boys' Haiti book. Now only about 200 more photos in between to finish the story of my 9 week visit to bring them home!

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?

Okay, does obsessive compulsive disorder effect one's ability to quit playing Internet games?? I have done NO scrapbooking or cardmaking lately - I'm addicted to Facebook Gem Swap II. And it's not like I'm very good. And then I started playing Facebook Farmville...Agh!! I can't stop! The mind numbing is so relaxing!! With all the chaos around here it is so nice to veg out! Hoping I can get the creative juices flowing for some new projects for 2010. It doesn't help that my current scrapping project is high pressure - doing the book for my 9 weeks in Haiti. As it is my boys' "Life Book" I feel so much pressure to do a good job and then I just keep pushing it off...
Such is life. Procrastination at it's best.
Anyone read Screwtape Letters? Am I being sidetracked with the inane game playing??

Merry Christmas!

I am so thankful our family is together and healthy this Christmas! I'm finally getting around to making Christmas cookies! Peanut clusters and white chocolate covered pretzels - YUM! We are going to have supper tonight with our neighbors and then spend a cozy day together tomorrow. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas! May each of you experience the anticipation of awaiting Jesus's birth and the fullness of His presence throughout the year!

Anniversary Card

I am happy with how this card worked out. Once I finally figured out what I was doing, it was easy to make 4 of these with the papers I had. The two patterned papers are actually a little 6x6 double sided square of paper, folded. The edges were already cut with the design, so I got some extra accents on here with no extra work! The title was stamped on white paper, then cut and embossed with one of my new Spellbinders Label dies. I love them! So much fancier than just cutting out little squares for my title blocks!

Citadel Layouts

It took two weeks, but I finally finished three layouts of our visit to the Citadel. The Citadel is a fort built in the early 1800's near Milot, Haiti. It was built soon after the successful slave revolution as protection against a possible French attack. The building is huge and has many interesting architectural features. It was a long, hot, steep hike up to the fort, and DS1 was a big trouper making it all the way! DS2 got to ride on Daddy's back most of the way. I wish I could have too!

Do the Math

We have a family of seven, so we can accumulate quite a bit of dirty clothes fairly quickly. I find it easiest to TRY to do all the laundry once a week. A full day of laundry while we homeschool - starting before breakfast and often folding the last load the next day. My least favorite load to fold is the whites - socks, underwear, and DH's undershirts. So I got to thinking as I was folding: seven family members, seven days of laundry = 49 pairs of underwear to sort! And worse than that: seven family members, seven days of laundry, with two socks/day = 98 socks to sort & match! No wonder that load takes so long!

Thankful

It's been a while since I've posted, but I wanted to take a second to say thank you to my wonderful in-laws for making the LONG trip down to our place for the Thanksgiving holiday. We really appreciate you! And love you both very much!

Praise God!

We found our two lost basset hounds tonight. They were only about 1-2 miles down the road, staying in some one's carport. It took us about 3.5 hours (and a couple sedatives) to catch the skittish one, but they are now safe and sound at home. Hallelujah!
Our orange mixed dog is still missing. Praying he, too, will find his way home!

Good News, Bad News

The good news is we finally got back DD2's lab work. She has a strep infection. No sore throat, fever or any other symptoms, though. The doctor is hopeful that a round of antibiotics will do the trick. We will pray that the solution is so easy.
The bad news is that our three outside dogs broke out of our fence Monday morning. It rained all day Monday and most of Tuesday, so we were not able to do much effective dog-hunting until Tuesday evening. DH had Veteran's day off, so we spent hours yesterday looking, but after three days, they could have traveled pretty far. We have checked the two local animal shelters without any luck. I just can't believe we didn't find any of them. M has back leg troubles, and really can't walk all that far. O & P are so skittish, they are likely hiding somewhere or dodging any human contact. I don't know if they would have all stuck together or if they would have split up by now. Praying we can get them home safely...

Getting Started

I finally finished the album of all the pictures we have of the boys while they were in the orphanage. My next big project is scrapping all of the pictures during my 9 week stay with them in Haiti. A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step...Here's the first page for the album. Hopefully you can read the text. If you click on the picture it will open up to a bigger view :)

Please Pray

DD2 has been having mysterious joint pain in her wrists, hands and ankles for just over a week now. Fortunately, she was already scheduled for a check up on the day after it started. Dr. said to give it a week, treating with Advil 2x a day and no physical activity, hoping it was residual symptoms from a bug DD2 had a month ago. After the week was up, and the pain still present, we had blood drawn for testing on Thursday. Hopefully, the test results will be back on Monday. I'm trying not to panic too much, but I am very concerned. Keep hoping it will vanish as mysteriously as it struck. Please keep her in your prayers...

A Few More Christmas Card Pics

A few more pictures of the cards I made last weekend. Haven't really had time for any projects this week. Glad I got so much done last weekend.

25 Christmas Cards!!

This weekend I was able to get 25 Christmas cards done! 17 of them were made with random Christmas papers, scraps and embellishments I already had on hand. There are only a couple duplicates as most embellishments I only had one of, so most cards are unique. Eight of the cards were made with a kit by Basic Grey called Wassail. I recently ordered this kit (though it's last year's design) and was really excited to try it out. I am really happy with how they turned out. Below are pictures of the kit cards, I will try to post a few of my "original" cards later this week, and maybe something about our Halloween!

Jitterbug Lessons

We went to PetSmart both Saturday & Sunday this weekend. Daddy was working National Guard so it was just me and the kids. Perfect time to "shop" for a new four-legged family member! Well, not really. On Saturday I found Jitterbug - an adorable, cuddly, trembling tiny little Chihuahua. I called Daddy and he said, "No way!" DD3 was in tears. DD1 & DD2 were begging, "Please Daddy" while the other PetSmart customers snickered at our antics. So, being the good wife, I decided I'd better have a cooling off period before I defied Hubby. Despite the unhappy children, I decided we'd go run to the vet's to get meds for two of our five dogs at home and I'd decide during the errand what to do about Jitterbug. On the way to the vets, I prayed, "Please God, I really want this little dog, but I don't want to go against DH. Please tell me what to do." We went to the vet's across town, and drove back to PetSmart. And of course, not an hour later, little Jitterbug was already gone...I'm so glad she found a home, but really wish it was with me!! Guess that answers my prayer... He's got something else in mind for me!
At one point, my sensitive little DD3 has a realization. She's almost in tears. "Mama, why are they taking all these dogs away from their mommies and daddies?" I quickly told her that these puppies didn't have any parents and they were at PetSmart to try and find a family. She asked why they didn't have any families. I explained that some ran away and couldn't find their way back home, and others had mean owners and had to be removed so they wouldn't be hurt anymore. Then others had families that loved them very much, but for some reason - like sickness or not enough money - they couldn't take care of their puppies anymore even though they loved them very much. So these families took them to the shelter where they'd be safe and hopefully find a new loving family. DS1's face lights up, "Like my Haiti family loved me and took me to the orphanage so that I could be safe!" And DD3 adds, "And like my China family, too!" Yes, dear ones, but you are so much more precious than any puppy...

Lots of Swaps!

Man, the weeks keep flying past. I really notice it when I log in to post a layout and see that it's already been almost another week since my last post. I feel like we just rush through each day trying to meet all the day's requirements and forget to enjoy each moment. It doesn't help either that I'm constantly working on layouts of pictures over a year old...
This layout is of my boys last September on their Baptism day. Not very exciting pictures, but wanted to document this important rite. What was exciting for me was how this layout came together. First I chose a green/yellow patterned paper for my background to tie in to the boys' shirts. Then started digging through my supplies for coordinating embellishments. I found the black border, black tag, and black & yellow deco square in my pile of items I received in swaps! I added ribbon and brads to the border to tie it in to the colors a little better. Added the journaling to the tag, and I was ready to go!
The title was created by me and cut on my Wishblade. The file is available at CuttersMarket.com if you have a layout you'd like to add it to!

Shine Layout

DS2 usually becomes completely stoic when you pull out a camera; he refuses to smile at all. So it was a real joy to have all these pictures - all taken in one setting - of him clowning around for the camera! What a cute little boy when he turns on the charm! I wish he'd learn his smile was a better tool for getting his way than the tears!

The Shine title was cut on my wishblade. The file is available at Cuttersmarket (link at right) if you'd like to add it to your layout.

Fun New Card

I learned how to make this card by watching a video on You Tube that was recommended by one of my online scrapping friends. I think it turned out pretty cool! If you'd like to watch the video, you can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/user/heroarts?blend=2&ob=1#p/u/40/3aSa0nnZB6w. Thanks for the great idea!

Two Wheels

I was sick all last weekend and the beginning of this week. Lots of congestion and this scary stabbing headache. But isn't it great when you start feeling better!? I spent the middle of the week catching up from all I left undone while sick, so scrapping had to wait until today!
These pictures were taken last August when DD3 learned to ride her bike without training wheels. I'm not sure if DD2 took the pics or if I did. But they turned out really good for action shots - always difficult for me! When I pulled out these bright colored pics I knew I had some pink paper with orange dots that would work great. Got to digging through my paper piles and found matching orange paper with pink dots. I think it works well together. Hope you like it!

Outlines Christmas Card

Just received a COOL new stamp this week. I've been so excited for it to arrive - and a little fearful. You see, I've seen some awesome projects made with Outlines stamps, and I was worried I would only be able to create a mess. So tonight I started playing. This card is my first attempt. Think it turned out pretty well! I still need some practice embossing and with the intricate cutting, but not bad for a first attempt, I think! It took me about 3 hours to put this one card together. DD#1 said, " You did all that for ONE card? Dude, that's just not worth it!" Ah. Non-crafters never understand! I actually think it's fun!

Layout - with help from a Friend

Just wanted to share a two page layout I created this week. This picture was taken last summer, of the kids having a great time splashing around in the yard. Both the "Summer Vacation" title and the beaded accents which read "hot" "summer" "fun" were created by Laura D. Laura is in one of my scrapbooking swap groups and she creates some great projects! Thanks Laura for making this layout so easy! I also created the water splashes with my Wishblade. I think they turned out pretty cute. I am going to upload this file to Cutters Market tonight in case you want to cut some splashes too! I made the butterflies with my Cuttlebug using a cute Quickutz die I found on ebay. My Wishblade is great because I can cut just about anything I dream up, and it is very easy to cut a shape in any size variation, but the Cuttlebug is so easy and quick! Love them both!

Chippy Update!

I almost forgot to post an update on Chippy. That tiny little creature was very resilient. When DD2 brought him to me I thought he was a goner. But he quickly perked up during the day. That evening, he would still let me pet him. By the next morning he was ready to go. Even though he was in a small container, I couldn't even touch him let alone pet him. And he was coming VERY close to jumping over the 15" sides. So, we had to let the cute little creature go. I took him outside and tipped the container over by some bushes. He hesitantly crawled up the side of the container and sat on the edge for a few seconds before scurrying off into the brush. Good luck, Chippy! Stay away from Chester!
And thank you Dad K for the pointers on how to care for Chippy! His favorite was apple slices! We love you and wish you lived closer so you could have come helped us!
After Fluffy and Chippy I think I'm getting prepared for a newcomer to our household...Will the newcomer have 4 legs or 2?? Bigger or smaller than a breadbox? Someone asked us at church today if we were going to adopt again...Are we ready to start on another 2-3 year journey? Some days I'm ready, some days I'm not. Lord, are you ready for us to embark on another adventure? Where will You lead us this time?

Christmas Kreations

We had a card making class at our church yesterday afternoon. It was a lot of fun. It was great to see how others used the same supplies and came up with some very different designs. I made 2 1/2 Christmas cards, then came home and finished up the third one. They are all pretty simple, but think they turned out pretty cute! And now I have three more done for Christmas season - a little at a time and it will take some of the pressure off in November & December.

I have ordered a new Outlines Christmas ornament stamp. I'm hoping it will come in late this week or early the next. It is for making multi-layered designs. Not sure I'm up to the challenge, but I can't wait to give it a try! Anyone else started getting ready for Christmas??

Happy Birthday, Dear Daughter #2

Yep, three posts in one evening. Busy day! But had to save the most important for top billing. DD2 turned 11 today. It's so hard to believe she's getting so old. I love you baby girl! I remember you when you were a newborn. Our little glow worm under a special light to help your jaundice. And now you are testing us to see if you can wear makeup out in public! Where did all the days go? The good and the trying, I'm thankful for them all. You are such a special, crazy, confident, sensitive girl. I'm so proud to be your Mama. Love you, Sweetheart!

Chippy

Another four legged rescue has found its way into our home today. DD2 was relaxing in the sunroom today and saw that our cat was playing with a little chipmunk. So, of course she had to run out and save it! Next thing I know, our 1st grade/kindergarten class is interrupted with DD2 shouting excitedly through the window, "Look, Mom, he's so cute!" I could see a little furball in her hands.
I ran out to investigate and found a half-mauled baby chipmunk in her hands. I took him from her and found a shoe box and a wash cloth for him. I laid him down and thought he was surely a goner. I tried to warn the kids that he wasn't likely to make it. He just really wasn't moving any. There was only one external sign of trauma, a scratch on his face, but he was not acting well...
About 2 hours passes and all of a sudden the little thing really perked up. It looks like he might make it! We had to move him into a taller container; the big girls found a tall Tupperware container in the attic to (hopefully) keep him from escaping. We fed him acorns, apple slices, and a mushroom. The apple appears to be the favorite. Now we just have to decide how to best continue the rescue effort. If we put him back outside, the cat is sure to get another chance at him. If we leave him inside, Chiefie is gonna go nuts until he can get to it. And DH says we can't keep him....

More Anniversary Cards

Worked on a couple more anniversary cards tonight. My supply was running low. The red paper in this one was a "paper mini" from a package of papers I received recently as a PIF (pass it forward) from one of my online scrapping friends. I love the jagged precut edges in just the right size for a card front. I embossed the title block with one of my new cuttlebug folders. I think this one turned out pretty cute! I like the dark red/dark blue/cream combination.

Didn't like how this one turned out quite as well. Not sure how I could have tweaked it...The flower block was made using a Quickutz mini embossing folder. Then i ran a dark blue ink over it to highlight the embossing. Then I randomly colored in a couple of the flowers with a red accent. You can't really tell in the picture, but I also used my stardust pen to add a light glitter to the words and red flowers. Not my favorite, but glad I got a chance to play with the little embosser. I've had it a couple weeks and hadn't used it yet.

Thanks for looking!

TOGETHER at last...

Yeah! More scrapping time! Started this one yesterday, but wasn't very pleased with how it was working out. I had the title letters and the picture, and kept moving things around trying to find good balance. After many failed tries, I really like how this one turned out. Very glad I didn't proceed with one of the earlier versions, because this one worked out so much better. If only I could work on pages that are more recent - this picture is from last July, a few days after the boys & I came home. The journaling says: After spending 9 weeks in Haiti, waiting for U.S. Visas for the Boys, it was so Good to be Home and have All my Children under the same roof.

Backyard Fun

Had some time to work on this layout from last July ('08). These pictures are of the kids playing in the yard just a few days after the boys and I came home from Haiti. As you can see from the boys' faces, they were still getting relaxed! The colors on my picture of the layout didn't turn out the best, but I love these papers. They are tan, celery green, burgandy and a deep purple with safari and geometric prints. The title is something I created a while ago for cutting with my Wishblade. If you would like the file, it can be found in my Cutter's Market Gallery (see link on right).

Just ordered 187 pictures from my 9 weeks last summer in Haiti staying with the boys. Can't wait to get them in, but I'm a bit overwhelmed about the number of prints I have to scrap! That's another overwhelming project!

And now that my Wishblade is out for the first time in 2 months, I need to get a couple titles cut for a friend of mine. Thanks for your patience, Linda!

Made this cute card today while the 1st graders were doing seatwork! Found the blue print paper in my scraps. The white ribbon is a repurposed item - it was originally for hanging baby girl hair clips (I only used about 1/2 of it). The blue flowers are from a new package of petaloos I got on sale at scrappingstamping.com. Very cute. Love the shimmery flower centers that come with the flowers - less bulk than brads, so good for mailing. And of course I used my Stardust pen to add some glimmer to the sentiment. I think it dresses it up a little. Hope you like it!

Go Run

I had some time this afternoon to work on a new layout. It only took me 9 1/2 years to get it done! This is from a 5K I did in February of 2000. I found the pictures and the two die cuts one day recently when I was going thru some old papers. The die cuts were yellow and red. I painted them and the chipboard letters so that they would tie in better with the papers I chose. What do you think?

Fluffy Update

Fluffy is really Sassy! Her owner found us!! They were gone over the weekend and a neighbor was keeping her and she escaped. Apparently the dogsitter didn’t go looking for her, so when the owner came home today she was searching for her. When she was asking around someone remembered us going door-to-door and sent her to our house!
Yeah! Sassy has been reunited with her rightful owner!

Fluffy Update

1) I was hoping that by the time I drug myself out of bed at 9:00, her owners would have claimed her...The kids & Daddy are playing in the front yard where she's staked on a leash, hoping someone will come looking for her.
2) DD3 has given her a name.
Things are NOT looking good.

I always wanted a lap dog....

Two entries in one day!!! A definite record! I had two things I really wanted to post about tonight.

The background for this story is that animals somehow know that our house is safe and the apparently show up when they have nowhere else to go. Right now, with the loss of Kane, we are down to "only" five dogs, one cat, one fish, about 10 chickens, and a horse that boards here. The cat came with the house, and all of the dogs are rescues from one source or another. Several dogs and kittens have shown up mysteriously at our door over the years. So we always laugh and say there is a sign somewhere that reads "Krueger Animal Shelter" that only animals can read.

This evening, I was sitting inside working on some birthday cards and the kids were outside playing in the driveway with Daddy. The kids hollered out to me, "Come quick, Mom! There's a dog!" So, of course I run out the door to see what hound has arrived. Daddy is holding this little bundle of squirmy fuzz! I can't believe this little thing was wandering around the neighborhood. Not the kind of dog I'd leave outside, but who knows what people think. She has on a pretty pink collar but no tags. We walked around the neighborhood, but couldn't find her owner. So for tonight she's in a crate in the bathtub, crying to be let out. And DD1 and DD2 are crowded into a sleeping bag on the bathroom floor next to her. Tomorrow she gets a bath and house-training test - if we can't find her owner!! Anyone missing a frou-frou dog?? I'm hoping I will be broken from wanting a lap dog (this little thing is yippy and HYPER) by the time we find her home. We will find her home, right???

New Cards!

I had fun today playing with a new stamp set from Hero Arts! I has a bunch of cute birthday cupcakes. What do you think?

Good Scrappy Day!

What a good day! First, DH let me sleep in! I often have trouble falling asleep at night, but come morning I can barely drag myself out of bed. Sleeping in is so nice, especially on cool mornings! Ah!

This afternoon the big girls had their first JEWELs Christian homeschool girls club meeting. While they were there we had 2 hours to pass, so we went to Lowe's to get paint for the laundry room & school room - and had time to go to BOTH Hobby Lobby and Michael's. Didn't buy much, but always enjoy looking. I did get black & gold embossing powders. I am putting in an order this weekend with StampingScrapping for Outlines stamps and want to try embossing them stamped images. These stamps look so awesome! I am hoping to make some Christmas cards with their stamps. I also bought a cutting mat so that I will quit damaging my desktop every time I use the craft knife...

This evening, while the kids watched a movie, I had a chance to make a couple more Anniversary cards. I used some scraps & embellishments left over from a kit. The quilted pattern is not typically my style, but I really like the little butterfly embellishments, so I think they turned out pretty cute. I like how the word stickers worked out: "Grow Together" and "Life Promise", something different for my anniversary theme, but highly applicable!

DONE!!

I'm so happy this project is finished!! The boys have been home just over a year and I was feeling pretty bad I hadn't tackled this yet. I had nearly 600 pictures covering the 26 months our boys were at Children of the Promise in Haiti - taken by volunteers, the Orphanage, or adoptive parents. I printed all the pictures, put them in chronological order (as best as I could), printed the email updates we received every couple months on 4x6 paper, created 4x6 dividers to mark each month, loaded the album and glued it all into place. The album had 500 4x6 openings, so I had to leave out some of the pictures, but I had quite a few near duplicates. It was a challenge to get the pictures organized in a pleasing manner as the direction of the pictures did not always line up with the 3 landscape/2 portrait layout of the album's pages. I was able to use lots of swap and PIF items for the monthly dividers which made the project go a lot quicker (like the adorable paper pieced bear boy on the first page). I am so happy to have this album put together for my boys!! Love you both! So glad you are finally home!

Next - to create an album covering the 9 weeks I was in Haiti with them waiting for the US Embassy to issue their Visas... Which means I need to get some more pictures ordered!

Maybe I'll make a few Christmas or Anniversary cards first!

Once Again, No Time for Scrapping...

A couple of months ago DH said it was time for all the clothes in the attic that were too small for our children to go. If we have any more children, we'll deal with clothing them when the time comes. It took me a couple weeks of 1/2 hour sessions (as that's all I could fit in at a time) to sort thru all the bins and organize them by size, and move the small sizes into an "outgoing" pile. I have about 7 bins of clothes that need to go. And that's after sending several bags of clothes to Goodwill. We tried having yard sales a couple times, but we weren't able to move much at all. So now I'm attempting Ebay. I have piles of clothes and envelopes everywhere. Trying to maximize my photographing skills to get the best pics. Learning all about estimating postage costs and devising shipping containers. So, if you know anyone who needs some little girl clothes, sizes 0-about 6/7, or any women's professional clothes in smaller sizes, send them to my Ebay listings: akcpa is my seller name. Or send me a comment if you are looking for something in particular! I would love for these piles to find a new home!
Besides, this will free up some room for new scrapping supplies, right??

This is a card I made this weekend. I started with the center piece, which included a little shaker window filled with tiny silver balls and stamped happy birthday as well as the striped frame. I received this from one of my online friends in a PIF. I'm not sure who made it, sorry I can't provide credit for it! Then I matted the shaker with blue and green and put on the front of a card. I used my new Hero Arts candle stamp from their cupcake stamp set to add a little extra to fill the white space on the edges. I used Stickles for the candle flames and used a little zig marker to add a touch of green to the candle images. Hope you like! Love having PIF or swap items to use as a starting place for making cards!