I would never have guessd it!

I am in love with a machine!  Yes a machine!  I purchased the April WIP  from Trish, and there was just so many cute diecuts in there!  I really didn't "get" what they were till I went to a crop the following Saturday and Ruth Tacoma was there.  (Ruth and I have known each other for years and our paths have crossed as our lives have changed....quilting, soccer, B-Ball and now scrapbooking!)  So Ruth had just purchased her Cameo and was telling us and showing us the cute stuff she had made with it.  Now the girls over at Willow Traders had been talking about it, but you know how it is, when you don't think you are interested in something you only half listen.

Well Ruth put a burn in me to get my hands on one of these machines!  I sold my Cricut Expression quick as a snap and with money in hand placed my order for my Cameo...Since it's gotten here that's pretty much all I've done!  What's funny is I planned on cutting paper shapes to make things like this bookmark which was the first thing that I cut!

Then I saw something cut out of vinyl and I thought, hey I could make my granddaughter one of those!  So I did!

I posted a picture of it on Face Book and a friend asked if I would be interested in making six of them for her bowling team!  Oh yes!  I would love to.  So I did my first "tracing" of some clipart for the bowling design and put the girl's names on them.  I was pretty excited to make my first delivery!

And then I posted this picture and an order for four more!  (I can't wait to hear how the teachers liked them!)

I thought I should make something for myself (after I made glasses for Brandon and Angel which I never took a picture of it you can believe that!) so I went to Walmart picked up a plate and vinyled  it.  This now sits on my kitchen counter.

I made tumblers for my two co-workers and I'm going to have to try and get a picture of them to show you!  I think they are pretty cute!  In the mean time look at these two Hello Kitty water bottles I made for my granddaughter and her cousin.

I also made one of these "Ipad girl" tumblers for myself and one for my Daughter In Law Jennifer.  (can you imagine all the vinyl ideas that are zipping thru my head?)

I did have a sketch to do for Nuts About Sketches #209.  Of course I had to use my Cameo on it. I cut the title (welded the letters together) and did a print and cut for the little cannon on the bottom.  It's so kewl...find a design, run it thru my printer to print the cannon and registration marks.  Then it goes into the Cameo and the Cameo will read the registration marks and cuts around the printed canon.

Most of you know that my husband Allan and own and operate a small business called Upnorth Design & Repair, INC.  Allan and I made this sign to go on one of the cooling machines that he designed. 

This week, I plan on working on challenges from Inspired to Scrap and Cookin' UP Creations, and I plan on using my new toy on these....  In between working with paper, I want to do more tumblers and even try my hand at glass etching using stencil cut with the Cameo.  I never would have guessed it!

A Sampling of what I've been scrapping

As a last child at home I spent alot of time by myself but I never really felt lonely.  I had lots to do living on a small farm, and I loved going out to the barn or walking back in the pastures to check on the beef cattle.  I also spent alot of time reading.  There were no bookstores or Walmarts back then (and certainly no Kindles!) to purchase books at.  I remember it was a real treat to go into Ben Franklins and browse the books, and even more of a treat when I got to actually take one home!  I read these books over and over again, and to this day the sight of them brings back memories of where all I read them-my bedroom, out in the lawn chair, in the barn even in the car with my cat!

What I used to create this layout was from Work In Progress.  Trish just packed the April kit full of goodies and so many diecuts!  I loved it!  I did this layout at a crop sponsored to raise money for our local Habitat for Humanity, Char did a wonderful organizing and running the event.  And thanks to my cropping friend Ruth for giving each one of us that cute little journaling tag she had made on her Silhouette. I also want to give Nuts About Sketches the credit for the inspiration with another great sketch and also to tell you this was what I contributed for the reveal of #206.

Look how young Rick looks!  This was back when Rick was Ricky to everyone!
I created this layout for Friday Focus at Cookin' Up Creations.  This month each challenge (Tuesday thru Sunday) features a sketch.  I found one for us to use on Pencil Lines #265 and I wanted the challenge to focus on circles! 

Speaking of Cookin' Up Creations it's the beginning of a new month and a great time to jump on board doing some challenges there.  If you finish and share at least 15 challenges you are entered into a drawing for a great prize at the end of the month.  How kewl is that!  Not only getting projects and layouts done but a possible prize to be sent to you!  Maybe I'll see YOU there!

March's challenges at Cookin' Up Creations were all based on the board game Clue.  I had fun figuring out just what my challenge would be that I would throw out there.  I ran across these pictures with my husband playing with his new toy and so my challenge was to include either a picture or an embellishment using one of the weapons used in the game.  (and if you wonder if those diecuts came from WIP the answer is yes they did!)

Dot & Whimsey was generous enough to donate some of their product to the challenge team to use for April, so I will reveal to you on next week's blog what I came up with.  (I received the purple product and right away my husband had a suggestion what to do with it, and I agreed with him!)

Until next week......Beck

But wait there's more!  Call now!  No, not really don't call now, but yes there is more!  I wanted to let you know about the wonderful Whisper Graphic give away they are having on their blog.  Just go to their blog and find out how you can get FIVE entries in for one fantastic prize!  One prize but it's got lots to it!

Just for fun!

I always have so much fun scrapping and this past week was no exception!  I scrapped fun pictures and used fun embellies!

And this layout shows the kids having lots of fun in the camper on a very hot camping trip!

 Katy and Rick are having fun getting dirty in these pictures!  (Don't they make such a cute couple!)

Speaking of a cute couple, Rob and Annie have had their family grow bigger which I showed in this layout using a transparency of one of their wedding photo's.

And finishing off the week with Brandon and Allan a few summers ago shooting arrows at a local park.

Guest Blogger

I was thrilled to be the guest Blogger @ Inspired to Scrap's Blog last week!  I would really like it if you could check out what I had to share about this layout by clicking on their link!

Have you ever scrapped the same picture more than once?  I have done it a few times and when I ran across this picture, I KNEW I would be scrapping it more than once.  This layout features a photo of Rick and Brandon that I had previously used but couldn't resist using again:

Journaling:  I bet when you look at this picture you see two

little boys playing pretend.  As Rick and Brandon's

mom I see much much more...Besides the fact

that I see two brothers pretending  to be

rabbits in their closet I see:

Pokemon pillowcase and stuffed animal

The Big Tiger that Rusty won at Harvest Festival

The tape on the wall from when we painted.  (!)

Spiderman Slippers!

The brown Pup Pillowcase that had been Renee's

When I look at Brandon's eyes I see that he must

have had a cold.

I see two boys that I loved and continue to love

very very much.....

Love mom

Picture 2001

Scrapped 2012

 This past weekend Allan and I had the joy of traveling a few hours south to visit our new grandson!  Rob and Annie's sweet baby boy! (and of course Ruth, who just had us in stitches and you'll be seeing some of her in the weeks to come!)

The following layout was done for a "Clue" Challenge at Cookin' Up Creations.  Linda challenged us to scrap a life changing experience and I scrapped the 3K race that I competed in:

  Journaling: 

I can't think of a better word for how

I felt when when I was the first

of about 30 to cross that 5K finish line!

It was my first and I had just wanted to

do it in an hour.  I actually had just

planned on walking most of it, but when

I got going I couldn't help but slowly run.

I felt so good!  I finished just under 40

minutes.  It was a first of an annual

5K put on by Shannon Wellihan raising

money for Cleft Palate Babies in Oct. 2010.

It was just a year before this that I could

hardly walk half a mile without being

exhausted.  Elation baby!  Elation!

My husband Allan has always been pretty good about getting me pictures of what he is doing so I can scrap them along with the ones that I take.  Since he's gotten his Iphone it's become even easier to get the pictures:

The inspiration for the "Livin' The High Life" was a sketch from Nuts about Sketches #204.

The last layout I'll share this week was really a fun one!  At Christmas time I fell in love with this silly Red Bird Decoration.  My Granddaughter likes playing Angry Birds and so we called this one the Happy Bird.  I liked throwing sun flowers around it for the birds to land on the table to eat and I snapped a picture of them.  As soon as I saw the picture on the computer screen after I uploaded it, The Mothership came to mind:

  

Nuts About Sketches!

I'm finally able to share this layout with you!

This layout of 10 year old Rick (now 20!) was my first DT assignment with Nuts About Sketches!  I'm so happy to be on the team with the gals!  I took the sketch and did just the right side of it and tipped it on his side.  Shawn has so many great sketches on her blog, it is a go to spot!

Cookin Up Creations is hosting a Mystery Challenge this month based on the came Clue.  Remember that game?  Tuesday thru Sunday there are challenges based on the game and if you complete the challenge you will be pm'd a message possibly with a clue from Tammy.  Just like in the game!

Jan started us off with a challenge that required nine (!) different pp's because there were 9 different rooms in the game, circles because one room was a billard room and a tag for Mr. Boddy's two tag.  Another layout of a young Rick fillfulls all the requirements.

For Fridays Focus Jo had us focusing on using a score card, and the hand stitched "Boy" in the title qualified this layout Aimee's challenge at Burlap and Buttercups.  This layout features my husband and a much younger Brandon than he is now!

Tamara brought us Inspirational Sunday!  Yellow for Col. Mustard, twine for the rope, and flowers for the conservatory.  Once again, I was able to use a layout for two challenges!  Inspired to Scrap hosted a one hour scrap challenge and Stacey Locovic provided the sketch for the following layout, which is all about my granddaughter Ruth!

And oh gosh!  I almost forgot about the challenge that I gave out for Technique Tuesday!  Here is what my challenge said:  Mr. John Green, indicated by the green pawn, is a smooth talker. His family is made up of shysters. His dad is a low down thief and his mom tells fortunes wherever and whenever she can. Guess what: she's not a psychic. Mr. Green found a calling in spirituality. This means he sets up traveling tents and asks people to give him money, which is for the less fortunate people and that means the money is for him

At least that was the information that Wikipedia gave me on Mr. John Green. (wonder if his middle name is Deere? Yuk Yuk! Get it? John Deere Green....o.k. sorry....)

So now we know that Mr. John Green is a smooth talker. Hmmmmmm....Smooth makes me think of sanding something, even tho this roughens it up, right? So my challenge to you is to use sanding on your layout, or wrinkle something up and "smooth" it out, or both as I did! I sanded the black CS that matted the tag and the picture. The picture edge was also sanded a bit. The blue flags I misted them with water, crumpled them up and then smoothed them out again. I then inked the high spots. 

There's still lots of month left at Cookin' Up Creations and lots of time to get those clues for a great prize, so maybe I'll see you over there!

Gotta' Love a Good Mystery

The mystery challenges are going to begin on March 1st over at Cookin' Up Creations! I'm inviting all of you to come and join in the fun. There is a Bingo game that is up right now for you to choose words to play with, and the fun is about to begin! Complete at least 15 of the 27 to be posted challenges to be in the drawing for a great prize provided by the Scraproom! You won't want to miss this month!  Cookin' Up Creations!

 

I'm pretty wordy this week....

If you know me you know I like to talk alot and sometimes I do that on my layouts too.  Hey, when there is a story to be told, there is a story to be told!  I had two stories this week that needed to be told!

The first was a challenge from Jean at Inspired to Scrap.  It required us to scrap "the unpleasant side of life".  By fussy cutting the banner out this layout also qualified for the first February challenge at Scraptastic. I chose to scrap my son Rusty's hand accident in 1994.

Rusty was doing yard work at his college-Olivet College.  He didn't realize there were blades in the leaf blower and while cleaning it he caught his hand in it.  Rusty underwent several hours of surgery at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing.  He was home for a week before going back to college.  During that week a nurse came every day to change the bandages.  (Rick had to copy Rusty with his make believe bandage)  Thru all of this I don't remember Rusty complaining one time.  He showed a pretty strong character and I thought he was amazing.

Scraptastic not only has great kits but every Thursday they post a new challenge to win a great monthly prize.  This next layout qualifies for the last Thursday challenge of the month as it has mist on it.  (which is just something I've been doing more and more lately)

Last year when Allan's mom Aileene, passed away it was my job to clean out her apartment.  (You just can't imagine how much stuff she had packed away in that apartment.) Allan mentioned to me that it would be neat if I found the heart cake pan that his mom had used to always make him a cake in on his birthday.  In fact he mentioned that several times.  Aileene really didn't save many mementoes so I didn't hold out much hope of finding that cake pan from 40 plus years ago. On the day that we turned the keys into the office for the apartment, Allan mentioned that we never did find that cake pan.  This really bothered me and I was telling my friend Stephanie about it, and the next thing I knew she gave me a heart shaped cake pan. I didn't tell Allan about it and this year on his birthday I surprised with a heart shaped cake just like he used to get from his mom!  Allan came in from work, took one look at the cake and said lovely, "Do you know how many years it's been since I've seen one of those?"  So I think now we have a new old tradition at our house on Valentines also known as Allan's birthday!

This next one isn't too awful wordy, but I think it says alot!  I was challenged at Scraptastic to use a honeycomb background along with this sketch, Cookin' Up challenged me to do a layout about a couple and Burlap and Buttercups asked for a layer of three borders and this is what I came up with:

I'm not gonna lie to you, in the last 27 years we've had some pretty awful arguments, BUT our love has been strong enough to keep us together and for it to keep growing.  I love you Allan VanDyke, your wife Rebecca 2-25-2012

 (and just in case you were wondering, the borders are actually straight, they just don't look like it!  LOL!)

Thanks for looking!