Birthday Coffee

It's my birthday today and my fabulous hubby surprised me with a new single cup brewer. It's wonderful and it provided me with a great photo and layout idea that was perfect for Scrapdoodles first ever blog challenge. The challenge called for using some sort of household icons. I used paper from DCWV's Nana's Kitchen pack as a background and for some of the embellishments. I spelled out coffee with Don Juan letters and used Ashlyn's Alphabet for the coffee pot. Now I'm off to brew another cup - yummy!

Another Challenge at Practical Scrappers

I just had to double up this week at Practical Scrappers. The Challenge this week was to use a die cut. I already had made this cute turkey and squirrel back at Thanksgiving. I used the Stretch Your Imagination cart to make these cute cuts. Hannah wore the turkey headband during dinner. I saved it so I could use it to scrap a page for Thanksgiving. When I saw the Friday sketch, I decided the layout would be perfect for a quick Thanksgiving page. Gobble Gobble!

Practical Scrappers Sketch Challenge

Visit Practical Scrappers to see some great inspiration! The Friday Sketch inspired this layout of our Happy Hannah.

TIRE layout

I had this photo from last summer's trip to Wisconsin waiting to scrap. When I saw the challenge sketch on another blog (I can't remember which one!) I knew this photo would be perfect. It was a sketch from several weeks ago.

Another Diaper Cake

I just finished another diaper cake for a baby shower. I love making these for friends and family. I think they turn out so cute and diapers are always a great gift. I mean, you can always use a few extra diapers, right? Everything was cut with the New Arrival cart except for the butterfly - I used the Hannah Montana cart.

New Layouts and Practical Scrappers Challenge

I was in a scrappy mood the last few days. Here's a few of the layouts I completed... This week at Practical Scrappers the challenge was to use at least 2 patterned papers. Can I just say I love patterned paper???? The "1st Teeth" layout uses 3 patterned papers.

Cute Giraffe Baby Shower Invites

My niece is having a baby boy and I made the shower invitations. My first design had more animals, but I realized they would be too time-consuming to make 50 of them, so I simplified the design. I think they turned out so cute! I used MS Word to create the "baby shower" background sheet. The cute giraffe is from New Arrival.

Pretty Baby Book

I just finished this pretty baby book for a friend and thought I would share...

Christmas projects

Here's a couple of things I've been working on.

First, an advent calendar. I bought the kit/frame last year on clearance.I also used my Cricut to create a little nativity play set for my daughter. I used Paper Doll Dress Up and laminated the characters and put magnets on the back so she can play with them on the refridgerator.

Challenge x3

Practical Scrappers hosted a "Tri-Challenge" this week with two other sites: Frosted Designs and Stuck On U Sketches. It was fun to try to combine all three challenges into one layout. The challenges were 1: use 3 ribbons, 2: use an owl, and 3: use this week's sketch. Even better, by participating in all three and posting to all three sites, there may be a prize. I really like the combination of patterned papers I used (DCWV Fall Stack). The owl is from the Wild Cards cartridge and Autumn came from Stretch Your Imagination. The large mat is from the new Winter Woodland cartridge. I turned the sketch on its side for my layout. Here's the original.

Final Order!

It was a great mailbox day yesterday! A letter arrived from the courthouse which read, in part, "...the Court being satisfied that all the requirements of law have been met and that the best interests of the child will be served thereby, doth now by this Final Order of Adoption. DECLARE, ADJUDGE and DECREE that the child, Hannah Marie Hunter, is henceforth to all intents and purposes the child of David A. Hunter and Karen A. Hunter..." It was signed by the judge and we are so thankful and excited! I choke up just re-reading those words. I am so grateful to God and all the people He put in place to make this happen. Our girl is ours in every way.

Punch Challenge

Practical Scrappers this week challenged us to use our punches. I used my Creative Memories paisley punch on a birthday banner project. I embellished each letter with a paisley. On the "35th" part I made a flower with 5 paisleys and a circle punch. I also used my scalloped edge punch for the borders. The foundation circles are from Mini Monograms cart and all letters/numbers are from Don Juan. I attached them with folded paper scraps. The papers are from My Mind's Eye.

FaithKeeping

Hey Redeemer Friends - here is our next FaithKeeping Project! I hope you can join us on November 21st, 1pm-4pm in Redeemer's Fellowship Hall. This is a fun little project. If you want to add photos like I did, come prepared with small photos of things you are thankful for. I put my photos into a Word document, resized them to 1 or 2 inches, and printed them out on a sheet of photo paper. This is a great project to record your most treasured blessings this year.

Office Supplies

Practical Scrappers this week suggested using office supplies in a layout. I love office supplies and any scrapper should know that some of the same embellishments can be found in the aisles of your local office supply store for half the cost as your local scrapbook store - colored staples, fun paper clips, plastic, corrugated cardboard, pens, and inks, to name just a few. Back to school time is a great time to find serious bargains that can be used on pages. My layout includes staples, notebook-look paper (though I used a Cricut cut), and I was inspired by office tags. I hope you like it - I love the way it turned out!

Numbers...

Bitten by the Bug is hosting another challenge. This time Regina asked us to use number(s) in our layouts. I came up with two that I like. Of course my subject is my Hannah and I used my Cricut - Graphically Speaking mostly. Ten toes is my favorite. Enjoy!

Priceless Challenge

Bitten By the Bug's challenge this week was to use the Priceless cut from Graphically Speaking, one of my favorite carts. I also used the Hannah Montana cart for the Girl cut and the large flower flourish. Thanks to my sister Kathy who made me a bunch of crocheted flowers. Enjoy!

Cutie Pie Layout

I couldn't help myself from finishing this cute layout of my cutie pie. The butterfly is from Home Decor. I couldn't throw away the negative outline, so I glued it on the cream cardstock and cut it out to use on the page.

Cute Card from Sweethearts Cricut Cartridge

I recently purchased the new Cricut cartridge "Sweethearts" and love some of the cute characters featured on it. The Kitten is so cute - perfect not just for a Valentine's Day sentiment, but birthdays, thank-you's, congratulations, or add a Santa hat for a Christmas card. Here's one of the birthday cards I made for a September birthday.

My Crop Strategy

I'm planning on going to at least two crops in the next couple of months. I'll be going to a 1/2 day Croptoberfest in October and a weekend getaway crop in November. I always agonize over what to pack, so I'm working on a new strategy. For the last few weeks, I've been designing and laying out my pages, but not adhering anything. I just slip my ALMOST completed page into the sleeve, maybe add a few extra bling or coordinating papers and leave it for the crop. So far, I've got about 24 pages that I should be able to finish at the October crop. I won't have to worry about packing so much it takes me a 1/2 hour to "move in" to my crop space. Theoretically, I only have to bring adhesive. I'll let you know how it all works out.

Next FaithKeeping Project!

Here's a peak at our September FaithKeeping project. These cute little purses can sit next to your favorite chair or on your nightstand. You can take them in the car, or give them as a gift. Each will store several cards with scripture verses and prayers for all occasions. We're meeting on September 26th - see the September 20th bulletin for more details or call/e-mail me for information.