tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55145853048871805442024-03-05T15:30:22.405-06:00penny {scraps}Crafting the Story I Lovepenny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.comBlogger99125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-65454082156793616782018-10-15T05:38:00.002-05:002020-05-30T08:59:43.033-05:00Game On<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We worked in our garage last weekend, on what were, I believe, the last two hot days of the year. Isn't that how it can go sometimes? The garage organization is really the last big piece to fall into place at the new house. In 2017, I stumbled onto a blog post that showed using The Container Store </span><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">elfa</span></b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> System and fell in love with it. It then became a cat and mouse game of getting it designed and waiting for their fall sale that offers the discount on installation as well as the elfa shelving. We got to the purchase point and then installation day came and went, and we were left to work in the garage on our days off to get all of the items put into their new home. And oh my mercy, do I love my new garage storage system, or what? I may have gone out and just stared at it a few days this week.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">But sometimes the getting to where you want to be from where you are involves a little blood, sweat, and tears. In this garage organization project, surprisingly, it involved two of the three. If I bled, I don't remember it. See, sitting in my garage, waiting to be gone through and dealt with for years now, were about 5 bins of memorabilia. These bins of memorabilia were in our last garage, so it's not like I haven't been avoiding the obvious for years now. But, right sizing the house has us dealing with things that a big expansive home can hide and handle. Less square footage? You prioritize and deal, and purge and divest. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">And while Steve triaged the bins of actual items to stay in the garage and sorted out what was already quasi-organized into a seasonal sort of semblance, I sat with my bum knee, and he would bring me bins to go through. I think one bin held both 4K and 12th grade for my oldest son, and some years in between. That bin was certainly one to go through. Not only did I deal with school and art work, I dealt with years and years of Christmas cards. It's amazing how the range of emotions can be connected to seeing a card from a long deceased aunt, or neighbors from 1999, or high school friends from the 1980's. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">And while I sat in that hot, steamy garage working through all of these pieces of paper and the memories and emotions associated with them, I actually had moments of just recalling and remembering our various homes and our various garages. Quite candidly I will advise you - never go from a home with a three car garage to a home with a two car garage! Those three car garages spoil you! We have had attached garages, detached garages, the old house in McAllen with NO garage {this was the worst!}; all of the garages were two car garages, with our prior home being the exception with that beautiful third bay. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Some of these garages held two cars, and not much more. Some of these garages held tricycles and that battery operated Jeep the boys were so cute riding around in. Some of these garages held bicycles that we used to condition ourselves for the walking on our first trip to Walt Disney World. Some of these garages held ski equipment and golf equipment and lots of tools, all seldom used, but somewhat necessary to hang onto. And one of these garages momentarily held a ping pong table.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">I will confess that I love giving surprises. I love giving what is on a wish list, but I like to throw in a little extra. And one year I got the brilliant idea that the boys should get a ping pong table for Christmas. This was exactly what they needed as a surprise gift! And ever the adoring husband, he supported my surprise. I envisioned lots of ping pong games, and laughter, and time together. The boys were still in middle school, and we were often the gathering place for their friends. This would be perfect, yes?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Well, in the mayhem that followed Christmas Day, we didn't get around to putting it together until New Years Eve {and by we I mean they}. ;-) And at the time, the only place it would fit was in the garage. It was a fun evening. I remember it was, of course, cold in the garage, but the boys were interested and helpful to their dad and the three of them quickly got it put together. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">They were funny to watch play. Steve and I both come from families that love to game and compete, and win. Competitiveness is bred into our sons, I guess. I especially love the grimace I caught on Philip's face in the photo on the right. Seems like he might have just been bested on that shot, or was working up some fierce serve. We played off and on that New Years Eve, and after Steve's schedule settled down, the ping pong table made its way up to the boys' retreat. It dominated the room. The boys at this point had taken over the family media room and watched their TV and movies and gamed in there, so the ping pong table commandeering their retreat was fine.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">I didn't expect the ping pong table to be such a flop though. It was. It was a catch all for things. The electronics' siren call dominated the time, and it wasn't often that you could hear the cadence of the ball going back and forth, and ultimately bounding onto the hardwood floor and skittering around. Unretrieved ping pong balls became the cat's toys, and were often accidentally squished under the size 12 shoes that bounded around up there. If someone did want to play, it was hard to find those ping pong balls that had been neglected and more than likely squished.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Sometimes you try something and it isn't what you expect, or it doesn't turn out like you planned. When I was younger, guessing incorrectly would have bothered me more. While this ping pong table reality didn't leave up to my fantasies about it, it's no big deal. The times we used it and had fun with it were worth the hassle and inconvenience of carting it upstairs, and ultimately back down. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. You can never know until you try. And if modeling anything to my sons was paramount, it was that it was okay to try new things. And succeed. Or fail. It was okay to adapt and adjust. And in life, you sometimes need to just roll up your shirtsleeves and try. You might win or you might lose, but you get one shot at this thing called life. You may as well go for it. Game on.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Ping Pong ~ Garage Gaming ~ December 31, 2009 </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Title: Silhouette cut file</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-51776336336945971992018-10-10T05:57:00.001-05:002020-05-30T09:01:10.542-05:00Thankful & Blessed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Our first cool front is moving in now, right behind the rain that is falling. Autumn in Texas, much like winter, is more a state of mind than a significant shift. It's a gradual conversion, and fall to us is when it falls below 80 degrees, and the breeze is no longer hot. If we get any color change on any trees, we count it a bonus. Living in north Texas, I get as much fall as the state offers, and if you select your trees well, you can conjure up some "fall color" and tease yourself into thinking you have a fall season.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">I was chatting with my daughter-in-law and my youngest son's girlfriend in August, and we were talking about our favorite season. It was humorous to reveal that each of us picked as our favorite season the one which held our birthday. So, yes, as a Scorpio, my favorite season is fall. To me it represents all the good feels: the coming back home after the vacation months, the settling in to the keeping of the house and the ensuing preparation for company coming for the holidays, the anticipation of family gatherings, and the simple joys of football, </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">slower paced days, shorter days, glorious sunrises, and cool evenings spent on the porch or patio watching the sun go down.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Growing up, fall was a kaleidoscope of togetherness - the annual trek to Denton from Houston to be with family for Thanksgiving, the side stop at the farm, the smorgasbord of food at both houses, the sounds of family laughter, the setting of the one household television constantly broadcasting the football game de jour. It was like Christmas, without the cold (which I hate), and without the presents (which always seem to add stress), and for more days (because we always had Thursday to Sunday for this annual trek.) Yes, Christmas 2.0 definitely. The improved and better version!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">And then there was my November birthday! Early years were family parties that morphed into adolescent slumber parties, that morphed into my birthday being somehow recognized whenever we gathered for Thanksgiving. In our house, my brother's birthday was five days after mine, and my dad's birthday was eight days after mine, so </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">growing up </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">we had a trifecta of birthday celebrations, and while theirs both sometimes fell on Thanksgiving, crowning them officially as turkeys, mine never did, and that added to the joy and the fun of it all for me. I never had to share my day, and I could never be called the turkey. Win win.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">As I transitioned from high school to college, fall meant the imminence of Thanksgiving break, and the real homecoming - the trek from central Arkansas back to coastal Texas, and bringing with it the relief from roommates, dorm life, professor quirks, unending assignments, and most importantly, cafeteria food. Ahhh...the food of fall! Chili, casseroles, chicken fried steak, fried eggplant, hot water cornbread, pies, cookies. There's nothing better than my mother's cooking. I come from a family of good cooks, and it really spoils you to the savory goodness of family favorites. To me, home cooked meals are quintessential to the adoration of all things fall.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">As a young married gal, fall turned into planning a multi-family gathering in Houston which was followed by a marathon shopping day. Yes, we were Black Friday gals. My mom, my sisters, and I started Black Friday shopping when I was in elementary school, heading to the budget basement floor of downtown Foley's, back before malls existed. When Gulfgate Mall opened up, we shifted to that mall, and then we moved around over the 30 years (~ 1970 to 2000) of Houston Black Friday shopping to whichever mall was the newest, or had the best Foley's. When my sisters had toddlers, we would head to Toys 'R Us first, and then move on to Foley's. Walmart and Target folded in there along the way, the newer version of Gemco.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">When we moved away from the Houston area in 1997, we were initially able to head back "home" to Houston for family Thanksgiving while we lived in San Antonio. However, in 2000 when we moved south to the border town of McAllen, our Thanksgivings changed and we began the new tradition of having our own Thanksgiving, and welcoming whomever was willing and able to travel to be with us. {Having a husband in retail has its benefits, but also its pitfalls. No traveling on the holidays definitely falls into the latter category. But like with much of life, we adapt, choose joy, and press on.}</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">By the time we moved to Dallas in the summer of 2005, we were adjusted to our new routine, and began recruiting early for guests to come join us for our fall feast. And with that came the anticipation of the company, and the preparation for their arrival. We love to welcome guests to our home. And part of the whole fun of fall, to me, was in using the golden days of September, October, and November to prepare my home, hearth, and heart for the influx of holiday guests. Since I am a natural planner, and since hubby works so much during the holiday season, we learned to start early, especially as we have aged! We don't move quite as fast as we used to. ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">And as some years were spent alone, with the travel rotation of friends and family committed elsewhere, we duly learned to be thankful for the years when we did have company, and we also truly learned to enjoy the quiet years where it was a table set for four. {And having spent one year with a table set for two, I can truly appreciate now setting down four plates.} Every fall seemed to be a shift and like the leaves falling in the wind, a varied and enjoyed moment to take in.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Across the space of time and locales and age, I think the biggest shift I've made regarding fall is to take it from a celebration of the season to become a spirit of awareness, a spirit of gratitude, an acknowledgement of being thankful and blessed. Sometimes I hate the word "blessed". It brings out, in some circles, a sense of smug bragging, as if "I've lived such a good life - see my rewards?" and I hate that. But the "blessed" that resonates within me is the acknowledgement of all the incredibly good things in my life that are pure gifts, because they are completely undeserved. And I try so hard to be so thankful for them, not only in the fall, but year round.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">This little layout captures just a snip of what some might call my "attitude of gratitude". These are just some random photos taken by me in the fall of 2014, in the fall that turned out unexpectedly to be our last fall at our beautiful home in Murphy. Me sitting with my dog on my patio on a beautiful October afternoon. My husband working hard to clean the outside of windows as we prepare for company. The beauty of a changing tree in my front yard that I paused to notice when headed out for a walk. The cart full of special groceries on our foodie run to Central Market. Thanksgiving isn't just a day. Thanks giving is a way of life. And I want to recall, this year, this first November without my dad, this Thanksgiving holiday most of all, that I am thankful and blessed. I want to remember. Help me remember. Thankful. And blessed.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">I Heart Fall ~ Fall Bliss ~ October 2014</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Title: Simple Stories</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-27254857531187480962018-04-23T21:07:00.002-05:002020-05-30T09:02:13.165-05:00I Love Coming Home to Truman<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">219 days. That's the span of time from my last blog post dated September 17, 2017 to today, April 23, 2018. There's a lot of story in that gap. A couple's ten-day escape, a weekend escape to Florida, eight holidays (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, Martin Luther King day, Valentine's, Presidents Day, Easter), one family vacation during spring break, too many work days, youngest son home for a week during his term gap, year-end and tax season, three calendar seasons (fall, winter, and spring), road trips to Houston and Tennessee and Florida, traveling to Washington for a week of work, another winter with a case of the flu, lots of every day living, and then the horrible, no good, very bad day in January when I got the 11:07 p.m. phone call that my dad had unexpectedly passed away, and it's twin horror that followed five days later when we laid him to rest at the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Houston, Texas. Yes, lots of story in that gap.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">When I think of the blur that 2018 has been since that terrible phone call received in the remnants of January 29, there are gaps that I cannot make pieces and parts out of, and there are quiet moments of normalcy where I can shelve the grief and keep the lifetime of memories at bay, and can live in this day - of right here, right now, life is good mode, and then there are moments of deep sorrow where I feel much, and remember much, and then feel even more. This grief thing is organic and raw, and honestly, quite puzzling. My dad always expected much of me, and I dealt well with his expectations, I think. Or at least I was always attempting to deal well with them. We had a rough love, but a real love. As a family of deep faith, we rest in knowing he is now in heaven, and we live out our days here until one by one our family chain that was broken in January begins rebuilding on the other side. I think what bothers me the most is that his participation in family events is over, and life as my extended and immediate family knew it is forever gone. There are so many traditional and cherished things that are now forever no more. And we worry about my mom, being alone, living alone, grieving, and everything we are feeling and thinking and doing and pursuing is quite normal, I suppose.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">As I muddle through these days, one thing that has been constant (besides my amazing, tender, loving husband) is Master Truman. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">He's such a funny little human trapped in a fur body. He "talks" to us with any one of his 100 different moans and whimpers and groans he makes, not to mention his many varied barks, or just his wagging tail and his mouth parted in his tooth-showing smile. Saturday I sat for awhile in my living room, with him resting on my lap, both of us staring simultaneously through the wall of windows, and through the panes of glass in the front door. Just a girl and her dog. We both love sitting in the brown leather chair because it affords the total panoramic view of the house - everything downstairs - and through the windows and door, everything outside in the side yard, and everything on the sidewalk and street. What I love most about him is he is content to be. To be himself, to be with, to be left, to be greeted, to be walked, to be adored, to be left to nap, to be loved. To just be.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">That message has resonated with me of late, as I have allowed my heart to feel, and my mind to remember, and my soul to ponder. It's okay to just be. To wade through each day with its own challenges, to seek the joy, to process the sorrow, to handle the daily minutiae of the ever pressing life. I had a fairly good weekend. I got some fun and productive things accomplished this weekend, and there were big gaps of time that felt normal and where my heart was light and joyful. And it was palpable. And that made me smile inside. Because I could finally feel some hope through the pain and through the sorrow. Not that in any measure am I done grieving, but that, much like storm clouds breaking to showcase the hidden sun, I could see gaps in the pain, and know that the storm of sorrow is transient and mobile, and this weekend I welcomed the break where I could feel the bright light of whatever it is called when you are grieving that you might call non-sorrow, or the absence of sorrow. Yes, it felt like I could see the sliver of shiny silver sun and feel it's warmth and know some joy, sense some hope of the lift from the weight of grief.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">And of many things I have wanted to resume these past many weeks, my blogging has been one of them. And as I thought about where in the world would be an appropriate place to pick up the tattered fragments of my blog, I though about my one temporal and real constant during all of this, my sweet dog that has been with me every moment I've been home, and who has been with me on many of my trips this year, including funeral week to Houston, my sweet little Westie. And it seemed fitting really, to circle back to him, as if in some way to pay homage to dad, who made us a lover of dogs, who always had a dog, or wanted a dog, or fought mom so we kids could have a dog (that chapter did not end well), or who was a part-time dog breeder of more than one breed through the years. There was one segment of life of late where dad, both of my sisters, my brother, and myself all had a dog simultaneously, and many of us have had varied dogs over the decades. {One sister's dog is now gone; the rest of us remain dog homes.} And they are/were all house dogs. We are a family of dog lovers, and I can still recall fondly the litters of puppies that were in our childhood home, and know that way back when, our love of the pup was planted in our hearts.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Dad found out about the Westie breed through me, and he quickly got a Westie not too long after I did, or who even knows or remembers...I think he may even have bought his first Westie before I got Truman. And as I think on it, I believe he did because I think I remember being exasperated that he got his Westie before I got mine, when I had been longing for one since 2006. Dad was that way - impetuous to a fault, and to the end. And as dad battled cancer and fought to recover from it, his dogs were constantly at his side. And as Truman has tended my heart these last 3 months, I know in a small measure how much comfort dad drew from Layla and Belle during the last 13 months of his life. And as Truman has tended my heart, Layla and Belle have tended mom's. Belle is at my sister's now, with a litter of 5. I told my sister that dad would be so jealous that he missed such a big litter, and I know my sister worked hard to get all those pups here, as one final tribute to the dog breeder hat that dad wore.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">When we were compiling photos for dad's service, a photo of him with his two fur babies in his lap was unanimously a definite addition.</span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">He did love his dogs, and they loved him. And his Layla is now forging her bond with mom, and I know that they are very good for <span style="caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68);">each</span> other right now, and watching mom care for Layla and talk to Layla rips a hole in my heart, and simultaneously makes me smile so big. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">And I like to think that the love our dogs have for us is a shadow or a glimpse of the unconditional and unfettered and ever forgiving love that God has for us. I am reminded when I see Truman wagging his tail that God adores me just as much. And that's the best thing in the world to come home to at the end of day. Yes, the love of Truman has been such a balm for my heart these past 12 weeks. I just love coming home to this little white fur ball boo. I love coming home to Truman.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">I Love You from Your Wet Nose to Your Wagging Tail ~ Master Truman's Life ~ Spring 2017</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Photo Play, Imaginisce, Bo Bunny</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Titles: Photo Play journal card</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-26268205701982289322017-09-16T16:16:00.001-05:002017-09-16T16:16:24.688-05:00Ready for Happily Ever After<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">It seems only logical to follow my last blog post up with a post to showcase some engagement photo layouts. I do envy today's generation that reaps all the benefits of living in a digital age. Marybeth and Philip have more engagement photos than were taken at mine and Steve's wedding! And they are all stunning. I had fun with my favorite 4, printing them out as 5 x 7's, and I completely went off the engagement grid by pairing them with a camping line. But I knew when I saw these photos that Simple Stories Cabin Fever would be spectacular. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />I want to share here some words I penned for Marybeth on her January birthday:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><i>I met Miss Mary Elizabeth Perry of Memphis, TN on May 12, 2016,
but I had first heard of her two years earlier. Sometimes good things come to
those that wait. I have never had a daughter, and have never regretted having
only sons. And for years I have prayed for the women my sons would date, and
court. On May 12, 2016, I knew that God had answered my prayer with Philip. It
was love at first sight. Steve and I waited anxiously, albeit nervously, in the
lobby of the Grand Floridian as Philip and Marybeth drove down to Walt Disney
World from Nashville. When we got the text that they were getting close, we
moved outside to the porte cachere. The first photo below is the first photo I
ever took of MB, and what followed were four days of together time, of family
fun, of getting to know one another, of staying up until 3 AM, of laughing
hard, of sharing meals, all while we traipsed around the Happiest Place on
Earth.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><i>It was a gamble for me to invite her to join us. It's a little
unnerving, on both sides, to meet someone for the first time and feel the
weight of potential future commitment. MB is a delight to be around, and she
offered me several gifts over those next 4 days. The first gift was just the
absolute thrilling joy of having another girl on the family trip, someone who
would break out in song with me, someone that would race to see the princesses
with me, someone that always smiled and jumped INTO the selfie. The second gift
was seeing how much my son loved her. That first day we stayed at Magic Kingdom
until after 2 AM. We made it to our hotel about 2:30 AM and as we approached
the hotel door, I heard my son say, "Babe, give me the keys. I want to go
to the car and get your hairspray." Somewhat silly you may say. But I knew
in that moment that the boy that would walk quite aways into a parking lot at
2:30 AM for a can of hairpray was a boy that was in love with this girl by his
side. And, seeing how they interacted together over the next 4 days, it was
endearing to see such a bedrock of commingled friendship and affection, of tenderness
and jesting, of loving and of liking one another. The third gift that she gave
me was just the gift of being herself. It was easy to see that she was a
confident and fun girl, and completely comfortable being in her skin. She
embraced all experiences and enjoyed the adventure. She said yes to trying new
things. She was up and at it early each day, and went hard all day long,
enjoying every moment of it all. I still chuckle when I recall her pushing back
at Andrew's teasing of Philip by jabbing her finger toward him and spurting,
"QUIT IT." The fourth gift that she gave us was of loving Steve and
I. It was such an honor to meet her, to spend time with her, and to see her
wanting to get to know us and opening up her heart to us, and inviting us to
open up our heart to hers.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><i>Four days went all too fast. Since that May trip, I've had the
absolute pleasure of seeing MB again in August in Dallas, in September in
Nashville, in November and then again in December in McKinney - a handful of
days - less than 30 in total. But she is never far from my heart, I miss her
every day, and I look forward to having the rest of my life to spend time with
her and to continue to get to know her. This is the first year that I've been
able to celebrate this beautiful joy of a woman on her birthday. Steve and I
are so thrilled that she is now a part of our life. Happy Birthday Marybeth
Perry! May God pour out His lavish grace on you every day, and may this next
year of your life be one full of joy, of wonder, and of adventure! I love you
and you are such a blessing to us!</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And now Miss Marybeth Perry has been Marybeth Grimsley for one whole week! Yes, the engagement photos have turned into wedding photos. And I love that I have another girl in the family. I am no longer the only Grimsley girl! The last seventeen months of their dating, courtship, and engagement have been such a time of happiness in our family. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We are just thrilled to have a front row seat to watch them live out their very own Happily Ever After. They are so happy together.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Philip & Marybeth, Happiness Found Togther, True Love, Ready for Happily Ever After ~ Engagement Photos ~ April 2016</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Titles: Silhouette Cut Files, Ballerina Script, Arial</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-32593112424640679772017-09-15T17:34:00.002-05:002018-03-04T19:21:22.037-06:00The Fab Five<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I've had a slow week, and it's been enjoyable. But I've felt a little lost, to be honest. My big <i>To Do</i> list is done, and there is nothing grand looming on the horizon, aside from normal every day life, and the ensuing {and much anticipated} onslaught of the holiday season. I've worked this week, and gone home at night, and just been able to sit on the couch and watch football, and it's been good, but it's also felt weird. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">You see, on May 12, 2016, my husband and I met Miss Mary Elizabeth Perry of Memphis, Tennessee, and it was quickly evident our son was smitten with her, and we knew him well enough to know that this could very well be <i>the real deal</i>. They had their first date at a college social club roller-skating event on February 24, 2016, and from our phone and FaceTime conversations with Philip after that first date, we took the risk in March and extended an invitation for Marybeth to join us in May on our family vacation to Walt Disney World (WDW). It felt very daring at the time to invite a young lady, whom we did not know, to come stay with us in a shared hotel room. But, at the same time it felt very natural to want to meet her, and to include her in our annual trek to the happiest place on earth. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Honestly, aside from the initial awkwardness over the idea of sharing a hotel room, I thought, "What better place to get to know one another? There's plenty to do, conversation can be natural and not forced, and time together at Disney is always fun, right?" Thankfully, she took an equal risk and said YES, and so on May 12, Philip and Marybeth drove up to the Grand Floridian, where Steve and I had been sitting in the porte cachere, waiting and very excited and anxious for their arrival. She was shy at first, and rightfully so. Meeting "the family" can be daunting. But, for my part, I loved her from the beginning. How could you not look at her, and just be smitten? So much beauty, inside and out.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzyxiavudxW8senizhyVtaeiJ6wKfK8lkwlMkYnW-xuGZKIrZkEawzdLagbFLFVGoZffk4xXqKxberq4j92TyDZk1LtqA7LMA5zcHouuvchF8e_7ZpoeR35pELbJ7GsGuGAbCMzvh36R84/s1600/IMG_5268.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzyxiavudxW8senizhyVtaeiJ6wKfK8lkwlMkYnW-xuGZKIrZkEawzdLagbFLFVGoZffk4xXqKxberq4j92TyDZk1LtqA7LMA5zcHouuvchF8e_7ZpoeR35pELbJ7GsGuGAbCMzvh36R84/s640/IMG_5268.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">She was energetic, enthusiastic, funny, sincere, honest, heart-warming, joyful, happy, and caring. I loved that she jumped IN to the selfies, I loved that she sang songs with me in the room and in the parks, I loved that we ran together later that first day, after midnight, to the Princess Hall to meet Rapunzel. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We had decided, with the extension of the invite, to go ALL IN on our son's girlfriend, and we could tell early on that she was going ALL IN with us, too. She had been to Walt Disney World before, but so many things were still new to her, and seeing them through her eyes brought an added measure of joy to me and to Steve. I snapped this photo of her as we rode the monorail over to Epcot on that first day - she was straining to see the sights out the monorail window, and it made me smile so. Such a tender blessing. I could weep over the joy this beauty gives to me and to Steve, and to our son, Philip.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We had a wonderful day at Epcot. Steve, Philip, and I all chuckled every time Marybeth said something, because it included some iteration of the word wonderful. <i>"And I think to myself, what a wonderful world..."</i> Yes, yes, we all thought the day was indeed truly wonderful! We worked our way through Future World, and then headed back to the World Showcase, and we were able to introduce both Philip and Marybeth to the Flower and Garden Festival food booths. It was a beautiful Florida May day, and we just worked our way around the world, sampling drinks and eats, chatting, having fun. It was also wonderful ;-) that we had the PhotoPass photographers around to take our picture! Such a blessing to have the memories and the magic captured.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Steve and I had the opportunity to buy Magic Kingdom (MK) After Dark tickets for the four of us for that first day, Thursday May 12. We asked Marybeth if she was up for a long day. We tried to explain to her that we vacation hard at WDW, and I don't think she fully took in the extent of that, but she did learn quickly. ;-) {See, why waste any time when you are at the Happiest Place on Earth? Sleeping is for home!} </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">So, after spending a full day at Epcot, we park hopped over to Magic Kingdom and from 11 PM to 2 AM, we were able to do so many attractions at MK. Probably my favorite moment was when I finally had a GIRL with me that wanted to go into the Princess Hall. I have always adored having sons, but in that moment, it was wonderful to have a glimpse of what it would be like to have a daughter. So very precious.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Doesn't her smile light up the room? I loved that she and I both got to meet Rapunzel together, for the first time, on this magical After Dark night! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We got back to our hotel that night at 2:30 AM, the day spent, full of fun, laughter, smiles, and happy togetherness. As we approached the monorail station and prepared to embark, my Philip says, "Babe, where are your car keys? I want to go get your hairspray out of the car for you now." Now, to many people that might seem <i>completely normal</i>, but Steve and I immediately exchanged a knowing glance. This was <i>PHILIP</i> saying this, Philip who likes people to bring <i>HIM</i> things, Philip who loves to yell, "Dad...", Philip who tires first and loves to head to bed, Philip who almost never offers such a gesture! And this was Philip <i>offering</i> this <b>AFTER</b> a very long day, at such a late hour! In that moment, I knew he loved her so very much, and my heart melted toward them even more. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">He headed off to the car and we headed on to our room, all ready for bed. Friday the 13th was Animal Kingdom day, and we were going to get up and go hard again the next day. After all, we had only four days together, and four parks to hit. And up and at 'em we did. We were enjoying our time together, yet just a little bit sad that Andrew couldn't join us. He was in his gap year preparing for culinary school, working at two restaurants at this point: Ida Claire in the morning, and Whiskey Cake at night. It did not seem the same without him, and we were all thankful for Marybeth's presence to help aid our coping with Andrew's absence. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">One of my favorite things to do at Animal Kingdom is to see The Festival of the Lion King (FOTLK). I seriously never tire of this show. It's spectacular. <i>The Lion King</i> movie came out June 1994, after Philip was born that April. Buying that video when it came out was a "necessity", and my boys watched that movie together so many times during their early years. I always loved belting out the <i>Circle of Life</i>, and all the other songs, singing along while they watched the movie. So, on this May 13, 2016, when we were at Walt Disney World for the first time without one of us, as I sat in FOTLK, I wept. I cried for all the years behind us, and all the years ahead of us. I wept at the memories, and I wept at the possibilities. And I cried for the joy and the anguish of the day we were in - the joy of having Marybeth with us, the anguish of not having Andrew with us. Ah, "the circle of life, the wheel of fortune..."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Circle of Life</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elton John</span> </div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From the day we arrive on the planet</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And blinking, step into the sun</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There's more to be seen than can ever be seen</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">More to do than can ever be done</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some say eat or be eaten</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some say live and let live</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But all are agreed as they join the stampede</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You should never take more than you give</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the circle of life</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's the wheel of fortune</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's the leap of faith</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's the band of hope</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Till we find our place</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the path unwinding</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the circle, the circle of life</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some of us fall by the wayside</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And some of us soar to the stars</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And some of us sail through our troubles</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And some have to live with the scars</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There's far too much to take in here</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">More to find than can ever be found</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But the Sun rolling high through the sapphire sky</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Keeps great and small on the endless round</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the circle of life</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's the wheel of fortune</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's the leap of faith</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's the band of hope</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Till we find our place</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the path unwinding</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the circle, the circle of life</span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And as we walked out of the show, those lyrics ever seared on my heart, my eyes damp from the tears, my 6' 2" baby boy is actually standing there in the Harambe Market plaza, waiting for me, having woken up at 3 AM to fly over from Dallas to WDW for 24 hours. It was the greatest surprise of my life, and I cried and screamed and laughed all at the same time, and that baby boy Andrew just laughed and laughed, knowing he had pulled off a good one.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This boy of mine has such a big and genuine heart. "The circle of life, the wheel of fortune, the leap of faith, the band of hope...'til we find our place on the path unwinding..." And in that moment, it was pure and joyful, and the five us us were together. Andrew got to meet Marybeth, and Marybeth got to meet Andrew, and for one day we were all together. We, like Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto, were the Fab Five.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We finished up Animal Kingdom and park hopped to Hollywood Studios, and the day went all too fast. Andrew had worked on Thursday, and had to work on Saturday night, his ethics preventing him from asking for a day off. It meant so much to all of us that he wanted to come over and be with us. I've teased him since that he has forever ruined FOTLK for me because when I walk out, there is no grand surprise of him standing there to greet me. ;-) He enjoys that, I think. ;-)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I have lots of photos of that day to scrap, and I will get to them all soon I hope. Such a wonderful day. After Andrew left us, we finished up our trip Sunday at Magic Kingdom. And that trip ended, and life went on. The Fab Five. Philip and Marybeth continued dating, and by Thanksgiving, Philip began talking to us about engagement rings. And he and Marybeth, having only started dating in February, knew soon they were the forever ones for each other, and even looked together in Dallas over Thanksgiving break for rings. In our family, we fall hard, and we fall fast. ALL IN. {I remember Steve and I started dating in October, and were engaged in July. When you know, you know.}</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It was February 25, 2017 when Philip proposed to Marybeth. And the <i>wedding planning</i> swirl joyfully began. Venue found, date selected, and all the decisions began falling into place. And this time last week, Steve and I were driving toward Gallatin, Tennessee with a car load of supplies, set to host the rehearsal dinner Friday night. Philip and Marybeth had the most beautiful wedding on Saturday, September 9, and have now begun their very own Happily Ever After. Such a blessing and such a joy. And I'm so looking forward to scrapping it!! </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And right now we are officially The Fab Five. And we are ready for another chapter. Another beautiful, new chapter. What I have learned is that <i>Best Day Ever</i> is an organic term. You can and do have the <i>Best Day Ever</i>. And then life comes along and hands you something bigger and better, another <i>Best Day Ever</i>. I'd like to think that The Fab Five are ready now for another <i>Best Day Ever</i>. Right now we're just resting up, living our normal life, waiting for it. But I think I will see it coming someday. I hope I do. I sure hope I do. Because The Fab Five will take another <i>Best Day Ever</i>. "There's far too much to take in here..." But, we're trying. Boy are we trying.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Best Day Ever ~ The Fab Five at Hollywood Studios ~ May 13, 2016</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">P</a>interest (I apologize - I cannot find the layout that inspired me - I will continue to search for it.)</div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Simple Stories</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-74122911752186038122017-07-20T17:58:00.004-05:002017-07-20T17:58:57.673-05:00A Chef in the Making<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I don't know if I should go back to the little boy that was quick to help me in the kitchen, or to the boy that made me a cookie that spelled MOM for my first birthday that I was back at work, or to the boy that was in his element as a food runner and expo at Top Golf, or to the boy that did not want to go to college and did not really enjoy college...These could all be starting points for the current chapter of his life, and I guess they are all touch points.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When Andrew was abroad for his semester in Lithuania, I did a layout about him and on that layout I used the quote:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><i>"We must take adventures to know where we truly belong."</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And while I struggle a bit with the expense of sending him to college in Colorado for one year, and then the expense of send him abroad for a semester, I know ultimately it was all part of his journey. I can't really complain. The child told me dozens of time his senior year that he did NOT want to go to college. I believe part of why he finally succumbed to going was the realization that he would get away from us, or at least get away from me. So, he did win in the end, and have his "gap year". And the $25,000 we spent on that "wasted" year and a half was - has to be - viewed as an investment in him. It's only money after all, right? ;-) It does no good to think otherwise....</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">So when Andrew set off for Colorado Christian University, he was going in as an English major, to become a teacher. And then before the first class began, he had shifted more toward a Sociology major. Or maybe I have this vice versa. <i>{Who can recall?!}</i> Then, during his semester in Lithuania - at least at the beginning of it - he wanted to major in Theology, and post graduation start church plants with his friend Chase. But somewhere along the way during that European semester, he got the bug about cooking, and found an online cooking class. He wanted to take it concurrent with his spring 2016 semester at CCU. And then it shifted to him wanting to <i>only</i> take the cooking class, and not enroll at CCU at all. And we debated and pleaded with the boy across the ocean to at least please just ENROLL for the spring 2016 semester, and then we could talk about it when he was back stateside mid-December 2015. We didn't win that contest. We haven't really won a contest with this kid for a few years now. Stubborn he is.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Now, you may recall that hubby and I had moved from our big home to a little apartment on July 28, 2015. So, said child coming home to live with us was really quite a factor, as there was very limited living space....And the second apartment bedroom we planned to use as storage soon became a bedroom that was going to need to be lived in. Andrew disregarded our advice and listened to his own heart and did come home indeed in December 2015, and did indeed take a "gap year". He did not move out until March 11, 2017. We had him at home for fifteen months and despite the apartment life, we really enjoyed having him around. And while he has long been a handful, I have missed him every day since he left. And I've only got the one photo of him in his new life, which hurts just as bad, and in a completely different way.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">But, while he was home, he was busy making good use of his time: learning the trade, building his resume, pocketing his paychecks. Through a Walt Disney World photography club connection, I garnered the name and number of a chef at a local farm to table restaurant. That chef hired Andrew in January 2016 to work in the kitchen, cooking on the line. Andrew worked at that restaurant until Christmas Eve. For several months during his Whiskey Cake stint, he would work the morning shift at a sister restaurant Ida Claire. He'd leave there at 3:30, after arriving there at 8 AM, and clock in at Whiskey Cake at 4:00 PM, working until close, finishing up around midnight. Then he'd get up again and do it the next day. He worked hard. He respected his coworkers and they respected him. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">After doing all he could do at Ida Claire and Whiskey Cake, he hopped over to another sister restaurant to work in their bakery and gain some different experience. It was amusing to hear him tell tales of his workdays all year long, and the change at the twelve month mark was good for him - he found out "for free" that he didn't want to pursue a bakery/pastry direction at culinary school. He said it was all too slow of a pace, and too repetitive. Working at the fast pace of the kitchen line had shaped him into someone enjoying the pressure of managing the tickets' meal prep.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The boy has always had an incredible work ethic and a strong moral compass. I was amazed at his energy level when he worked at Top Golf - always bounding out of the house, ready to go to work. At Whiskey Cake, Ida Claire, and The Ranch he was the same way, even though his work days were many times in excess of 12 hours, and he was on his feet that entire time, working non-stop, without breaks, water, food. I watched him "feed" his passion during his gap year, and I watched his passion feeding him, in the literal and physical sense of course!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We were trying to diet when he was home and it was so incredibly hard! That boy was always finding a restaurant for us to try, or wanting to go try a new dish at one of his faves. We frequently caved because we knew our time home with him was limited, and that upon completion of his culinary degree and his entering this industry full-time as a career that his time off will be minimal, and our odds of being home together for the holidays slim to none. But, ponderings aside, if he wasn't working and we weren't eating out, we might be found watching the Netflix series, "The Chef's Table" while playing a game of Catan. The industry as a whole is fascinating, and I soaked in all of this information, using it as my primer to morph into "mom of a chef". ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And during this gap year, while we were crammed in an apartment, building a house, having a son living at home, I watched not only the episodes of a chef in the making on the Netflix series, but I watched it happen to my boy. The longer he worked the line, the more he found himself refining his skills, defining his tastes, discovering his dreams. Around December 2016 he decided he was finally ready to formally apply to The Culinary Institute of America. He had the experience, he had the credentials, he had the recommendations, and above and beyond all of that, he had the refined and honed desire. The dream was still in his heart.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">He was of course quickly accepted and elected for a March 27, 2017 start date. {New groups start every 3 weeks, if you can believe that!} My boy had made the cut and was headed to "the Harvard of cooking schools". The countdown began. My mom heart got heavy. We ramped up our Catan games, knowing they would all too soon end. We shopped for some things. We got the financing in place. And on March 11, he and hubby headed out to Nashville to spend some time with our oldest son, and then from there Andrew would continue on to upstate New York for dorm check-in on March 26.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The picture below on the left is him the night before they were to head north in March. He was all smiles - so happy to finally be going, to be heading to his new beginning. I appreciated the irony of him wearing a Colorado shirt - a perfect farewell tribute to his old path - with the cheek to cheek smile a fitting accessory for his new adventure. And on the right, the one photo I have of him since March 27: his first day of class, clean shaven, in chef jacket and toque, for some reason serious as all get out, ready to head into the class kitchen. Right in front of my eyes, a chef in the making. I know he's doing well. I know he's showing up every day and giving it his all. I know he is making the cut. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Making the Cut ~ Beginning Culinary School ~ March 2017</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: My Minds Eye</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-89476184105126856902017-06-30T14:27:00.000-05:002017-06-30T14:50:11.905-05:00Grace Wins Every Time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">At the age of forty-eight, in October of 2012, I started this mental challenge with myself called "Fit by Fifty". Steve and I joined 24 Hour Fitness on October 31, 2012, and we both began working twice a week with personal trainers. At the same time, we were eating Nutrisystem diet foods {which tasted awful}. This focused stretch lasted until about June 2013. I did not have a good relationship with my trainer: she regularly had me crying, and so I decided that leaving for our Florida vacation was as good a time as any to quit. Now, I weigh myself just about every day before showering and I log it. I can tell you my weight on any given day for the last several years, going all the way back to 2006 when I began Jenny Craig {for the first time} after moving to the Dallas area. I'm not obsessed with dieting. But I'm probably obsessed with eating, and being married to a curious and persistent Foodie doesn't help my cause. It's highly unfair because said Foodie walks ALL DAY for his job and self sits all day for hers. The deck is stacked against me. Hence my campaign for Fit by Fifty. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Well, fifty came and I wasn't "fit" yet, so I changed my internal slogan to "Fit <i>AT</i> Fifty". Still had quite a nice ring to it, yes? I did a bout with HCG drops. And then I enrolled in Jenny Craig again. I started walking at lunch. I tried changing all the variables, looking for that magic answer to getting the scale on the downward slope that would match my aging trajectory. Nothing seemed to work permanently. It's all too painful really to recount in detail, as I have basically dieted my entire adult life. I've done all the food diets over one time span or another: Weight Watchers (three times), First Place, The Grapefruit Diet, Adkins, Jenny Craig (three times), Nutrisystem, Slim4Life, BistroMD, and I've done a couple of plans that involved pills. Remember "Fit and Trim", Sheila?.... Suffice it so say my working slogan is now "Fit IN my Fifties". Ah, the sliding rule of middle-aged sedentary working life, with a genesis of slow metabolic genes....</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I'm clinging to that quote "You never really lose until you quit trying" which is attributed to Mike Ditka, or perhaps you prefer "You never fail until you stop trying" which is attributed to Albert Einstein. Either works for me, as in it works to keep me trying, but I still haven't "won", because I cannot fully lose. And I'm not miserable, and I'm not seeking a pity party....I'm just determined in a comfortable way. I'm not willing to live and breathe and die for a fitness regimen, for instance. But I've stopped binge eating ice cream and cookies and chips. I'm exercising, more or less, regularly. I'm embracing salads now. Small, incremental steps. Lots of little steps of progress along the way. I see it as a math equation that can be solved if I work at it long enough. It's a challenge to be sure. And there is nothing more addicting to me than a good challenge.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">For what it's worth, I did lose the baby weight from both boys. I was a size 10 for my brother's wedding. I remember that navy dress well. And I was holding baby Andrew on my hip. So, whatever I've got going on is all food addiction related, and not maternity pounds gone awry....And there was one point when my eating got really out of hand, and again, without too many details, I battled depression while living in McAllen and ate my way through the pain, and got up to a size 20. I was at that size, or just below it at an 18, when we moved to Dallas in 2005. Oh, the pictures do not lie, do they?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It was equal parts vanity and health that drove me to Jenny Craig for the first time in early 2006. And that same formula has been corraling my gains and had me fighting for losses ever since. <i>{It is equal parts freedom and humiliation to write this out.</i>} As a companion to my dieting manueuvers, and in pursuit of the health aspect, I have of course had varying attempts and successes with exercise. I was never athletic as a child and when I wanted to pursue junior high volleyball, my father forbid it because of the uniform. Additionally, in the sixth grade I was diagnosed with</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> <span style="background-color: white;">supraventricular tachycardia and put on heart medication, and developed a mild fear of over-exerting my heart.</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, the metabolism of a highly sedentary person began its formation long ago, and I have been, as an adult, working that angle of the equation as well. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When I revisited Jenny Craig in October 2015, I did simultaneously begin a regular if modest workout: I would walk for 30 minutes each day during lunch. At first I did this begrudgingly, but over time, it became something I really looked forward to. By April 2016, I was walking twice a day: at lunch, and then again in the evenings with Steve. At this point in time, I loved walking. Loved it. I loved how it made me feel. I loved our end of day talks as we made our way through our mapped out path. I could tell it helped me handle my stress, and I could tell also that it was a great way to unwind the days' troubles.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">So 2016 rocked along as a pretty good year of victories in the weight loss war. From October 2015 to June 2016, I lost 24 pounds and then I stalled in loss with my Jenny Craig plan around June, and went off of their food plan because it was too expensive to be used as a "maintenance" plan. We did keep up with the walking. Well, by July I had put a few pounds back on. Between June and mid August, I had put 8 of those pounds back on. And in mid August, we saw for the first time in over a year some dear friends of ours from Knoxville, Damon and Lea. Damon and Lea had begun the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Fast-Metabolism-Diet-More-Weight/dp/0307986276/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1498771490&sr=1-1&keywords=fast+metabolism+diet" target="_blank">Fast Metabolism Diet by Haylie Pomroy</a> in February and we could see before our eyes their incredible changes in body composition and in weight loss. After spending the weekend with them, we came home convicted to try this new program that would repair our metabolism.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I will tell you that it has been hard. We have gone off and on Haylie's 28 day cycle plan. We have basically been off of caffeine, wheat, soy, dairy, alcohol, and refined sugar since August 2016. Oh, we have had our "cheats" here and again, but we haven't enjoyed how we have felt afterwards, and we have slowly been falling out of love with things like pizza, Mexican food, hamburgers, Italian food, desserts of all kinds....a whole host of former faves. The tragic downside of this drastic change in eating is that the social avenue of eating out basically dies a slow death. So many restaurants that we loved are out of the rotation for the meager nights we brave eating out. The inability to eat out, or grab a quick bite anywhere, has been the hardest aspect of it all. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">During the course of this new way of eating, I was FaceTiming my friend, Lea, and we were talking about the three phases of eating and cardio and weight training came up. She was talking about how they were running for their cardio and casually mentioned, "You know, if there's ever a 5K at Disney, we'd be up for it," to which I replied, "Well there IS, so are you trash talking me, or serious?" Before the conversation ended, it was rather apparent that I had committed to running a 5K, and she had committed to going to Walt Disney World with us. I think we were both equal parts elated and mystified. ;-) Thankfully, all of my walking combined with my weight loss had equipped me to mentally and physically take the next step. In November 2016, I was actually only one pound higher than my lowest Dallas weight from October 2006.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">On August 28, 2016, in the heat of the Texas summer, I set my Apple watch to track my first {pitiful} effort of my running workout, implementing a 5K training plan of </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">timed walk/run intervals that</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> Lea had shared with me. Steve was in this with me. We were all signed up {both couples} for the February run, and the training gauntlet had been thrown down. Steve and I did really well on our training until the time to move in our home on November 10 arrived. The pressure to get settled for the holidays superceded any race training and before we knew it, it was January and I was nowhere near able to run 3.1 miles. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">On January 10, two months after our move-in, Steve and I knew we were up against a wall and we resumed our race training, which was running 3 times a week. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Forcing myself to prepare for this finite deadline, and simultaneously confronting the reality of running {in public} with my husband and our two dear friends, was some of the hardest truths and experiences I've ever faced. I could not quit. I had to finish. I had to keep going. I did not want to, though. I did not think I could do it. Here is an excerpt from an email I wrote on January 24:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="background: white; color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "serif";">Last night as I was running I contemplated the verse,
"With man nothing is possible, but with God ALL things are possible"
and I thought about getting the word possible tattooed on my wrist.
No joke. I need the daily moment by moment reminder that Papa is BIG. I did not
have a good run. I am feeling very much like a failure at it. I am full of
doubt and feeling very foolish for even trying this. I am the oldest, I have
the heaviest % of body fat, and I have a heart problem to boot. "WTH
was I thinking?" kept running through my mind.</span></i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">In one last desperate attempt, on January 25 I Googled some 30-day 5K Training Plans and, mustering gumption and grit, on January 29, we increased our 3-4 day a week running regimen to running every day. Every day. Work, eat dinner, change clothes, lace up shoes, run, die on the couch. The 5K was Friday, February 24. I had a finite amount of time, and what seemed like an infinite amount of distance to cover in my running.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I would spend the next twenty days trying, trying, trying to get to where I needed to be. See, I just was unable to run continuously for 3.1 miles. But, what I realized on February 11 was <i>this was a mental hurdle</i>, and not a physical one. Let me share with you another email excerpt from February 13:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;"></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;"><i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif;">Steve and I continue to be PRESSED into the nuttiness of eating
FMD (and ALL that entails) and pairing that with the last minute prep for the
5K. I WILL BE HONEST and tell you I DID NOT THINK I WAS GOING TO BE READY. I
WILL BE HONEST and tell you that the progress I have made CAN ONLY BE
SUPERNATURAL. I alternate the breath prayer of POSSIBLE with IMMEASURABLE AND
IMMENSE daily, moment by moment, as I slog through our route. GOD IS SO
MAJESTIC AND OMNIPRESENT. WHO ARE WE THAT HE IS MINDFUL OF US?</span></i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif;">I
praise God for giving me the idea to SEEK OUT a 30 day training plan, and I
praise God for also whispering to me to evaluate the elevations that we were
running. We were basically running an uphill circle, where the downhill wasn’t
long enough to equip me for the uphill, with an accumulated climb that equated
to a 74 ft climb over the course of running for 30 minutes. (The Epcot course
has a cumulative climb of 42 feet. We ran that looping uphill route that
way for the last time on 1/31. On 1/30 we made the adjustment to push ourselves
to hit 3.12 miles per night, whether we were walking OR running to begin to
transition our bodies for the distance. (Another God whisper.) Papa has guided
me relentlessly, helping me to adjust. After 1/31, I felt so FOOLISH and
defeated. We took a couple days off, did some weight training, and went back to
running on 2/5 - hitting 3.12 miles successfully for the first night. On 2/5
and 2/6, I was able to run nonstop for about 6 or 7 minutes total before
needing to stop to walk. On Tuesday 2/7, I stretched that to 8 minutes running
before stopping.</span></i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif;">Every night during this time we are adapting our route, trying
to even it out, adjusting some each time, thinking where we can turn to hit
some flats…? On 2/8 and 2/9 we rest from running. On Friday 2/10, we head out
to run and I push myself - God helps me - to run for 16 minutes without
stopping to walk. I DOUBLED MY TIME FROM ONE RUN TO THE NEXT. PRAISE GOD!! On
Saturday 2/11 we go run and I tell myself I’m going to make it to 20 minutes
without stopping. Hit 20. Okay, go for 25. Hit 25. Okay, for for 30. Hit 30.
Okay, go for 35. At 35, I know I’m struggling, but I know I have the gas in me
to go ahead and finish. On Saturday, 2/11, I RAN A 5K FOR THE FIRST TIME
WITHOUT STOPPING ANY. I was filled with joy, elation, disbelief, doubt. MY PREDOMINANT
THOUGHTS WERE, “I DID IT!” FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY “CAN I DO IT AGAIN?” </span></i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif;">Well,
we ran Sunday 2/12 and yes, yes, praise God I COULD DO IT AGAIN. And my times
were a little better and it was incredibly windy at that. I document all of
this because in the span of FIVE DAYS I go from being able to run for 6 minutes
to being able to run for the whole distance…the time of that varies from 41 to
48. I ran for 48 minutes on Saturday and 41 minutes on Sunday….My paces are
improving. My heart rate is getting steadier and stronger…My breathing is
getting better. SUPERNATURAL PROGRESS. PRAYERS ANSWERED. I pray that I can
continue to get faster and I am not relenting on my training until the race day
arrives!! Thank you for your prayers and support. It means so much. </span></i><i> </i></div>
</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">{There were too many details to try to recount that, so the email sharing was the easiest.} </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I say all of this backstory to say, to quote Walt, "If you can dream it, you can do it," or to quote my scripture, "With man nothing is possible, but with God all things are possible." </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I feel like if I can run a 5K, anyone can run a 5K. When race day came, we were ready. The race began at 6 AM. We had to be at our corral by 5:30. We had to be on a bus to Epcot by 5 AM. We set our alarms for 4:15 AM. We all quickly got up and got dressed and, thankfully, a bus was there waiting and we walked right on. It was surreal to see so many runners. Over 7,000. We were slotted in corral D. They released 4 times from each corral at 2-minute intervals. We were the first release of our corral, and we began at 6:26 AM and finished 44 minutes later. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">My husband and my friends were so kind to run slowly with me, at my pace that would keep my heartrate at an acceptable level. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We started in the parking lot. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We ran in the dark. We played frogger around those that were walking already at mile one. Navigating the crowds was the hardest. We entered Epcot at the backstage entrance near the Mexico pavilion, where Donald Duck has his meet and greets. The race went so fast! All of hours and months of training -- for this brief 44 minute run. We tried as best as we could to stay together. There were moments where we were tightly together, and moments where it was just me and Steve, and sometimes I was at the back by myself. I just kept running. I had trained for this! This was the moment! </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The Photo Pass photographers on the sidelines of the race path, in their little green huts for safety and visibility, were proof of that. There was one moment in the breaking dawn when I was clearly by myself as I approached a photographer. It was after mile one, and before mile 2. I know this because towards the end of mile 2 is where I always struggle, until I push through that barrier and get my second win that takes me to mile 3....I know this because the pose I gave the photographer was my moment. That photo of me captures the essence of it all! I was here, I was doing this, I was running in a 5K, I was doing something I never before thought possible!!</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I know all of this was a gift to me from God. I know I'm not measured by my body weight, or shape, or size. I know I'm not fenced in by them either. I know my ability to break through that mental barrier on February 11 was my gift, far less tangible than my race medal, but so much more visible in my mind. From August to February, the four of us had a slogan, and on race day we owned it. We crossed the finish line together, holding hands, arms up over our heads. Victory. See, grace wins every time. I'm not done with my "fit in my fifties", but this story, this moment, this race, this medal is a capstone. And every time I doubt my ability to succeed, I tell myself "Anything is possible if you believe," and I recall a sparkly crown, a blue tutu, Epcot in the breaking dawn, 7,000 runners, my husband and friends cheering me on, and I remember grace wins every time.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Anything is Possible if You Believe ~ Epcot Royal Family 5K ~ February 2017</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Echo Park</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Title: Silhouette file</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-74071017932017019262017-06-25T22:44:00.001-05:002017-07-19T11:15:47.444-05:00Story Central: The Fifty Cent Tour - Part Two<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The cabinets were installed and finished on March 11, and then the paint was correct and dry, with all doors able to finally close, on Saturday, April 8. #longestfourweeksofmylife ;-) </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">There hasn't been a moment since then where I've walked down the stairway, or entered the room, that I haven't just enjoyed their simple navy shaker beauty. I don't know whether to give credit to Joanna Gaines or Jonathan Silver Scott, but the idea for navy cabinets for my room became imbedded in my brain sometime during my 2016 HGTV binge watching, and it was an idea I just couldn't shake. When Steve agreed with me on using navy, I was over the top excited. And I love these navy cabinets with every ounce of my home decor and color loving heart.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The fact that the wall relegated for the cabinet unit is fifteen feet long and the ceiling is 10 feet high gave me lots of working space. I decided to completely exploit the space and maximize it's utilitarianism: wall to wall, and very nearly floor to ceiling. Actual accessibility to the cabinet uppers combined with the necessity for some visual eye rest were the two overriding parameters that kept me from going all the way to the ceiling. Where the three center cabinets bump up a bit in height, I felt they also needed to bump out in depth. These slight changes give them more interest, I think, and make them more compelling to take in. Whereas I designed them in my mind as seven different cabinets placed all together, they actually were built as five upper units, and seven lower units, and that treatment ended up giving me more room in the uppers. Another delight at installation: they upgraded me at no charge to soft close drawer glides and soft close door hinges! No slamming drawers or doors for me! And you may notice that all the drawers fully extend, and they are each rated to hold 150#. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Such bliss!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When the trailer pulled up at my house on the morning of March 10, it was a beautiful sight to behold! I was definitely like a kid at Christmas!! The men had never heard of scrapbooking and {wrongly} assumed these cabinets were for a man! Nope! All twenty-two drawers are for me! ;-) As the crew of four men carried them in and pieced them together, I marveled at the precision of the workmanship and the strength of these men to hoist up these heavy upper units onto the base units, and get them to line up together in such exact measures. To realize that these cabinet boxes were all crafted separately, and then fitted all together is something to really just contemplate. As a paper crafter, I have just a snip of an idea of the measuring and accuracy that had to occur to get them to all come together. I really could not stop watching the wall come together. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The cabinets were something to behold from the beginning, but when they were finally painted, I think my excitement went clear off the chart to pinch-me giddiness. Oh, don't get me wrong. I was losing my patience at how long it all was taking, and the stuff all over the house was driving me crazy! But I was seeing where I could BE in a few weeks, or even, as it has turned out, almost 12 weeks, and it was just enough to make me punch drunk with happiness! The symmetry is so aesthetically pleasing to me, and as I began to finally move things in during the first of April, the accuracy of all my months of measuring came to light, and my hours upon hours of dreaming and designing turned to a delightful and present reality.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It's good to have this delight to fall back on. During the past twelve weeks, I have sifted through so, so, so many piles that it's been non-stop sorting and organizing, which can get exhausting! My strategy was to bring everything back into the room in small bundles, and to work through - and touch - everything from those small bundles before putting it away. There were things that were purged to a "going away" pile, there were things that needed to be re-containerized, there were things that needed to be added into Evernote <i>{this is a whole blog post on its own one day, and something I'm very passionate about!}</i>, and there were a few things here and there that could go into their new home just as is. Bloody little fell into this last category!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Enough back story. Let's go see them! I'll show you all the uppers, and then we can walk through them.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I'll start with the three center cabinets, as they house the core of my paper collection, which is the foundation for any scrapbooker. The large upper cabinet of the three central, larger units hold cardstock on the top shelf and patterned paper on the bottom shelf. The cardstock is in ROYGBIV order left to right, through the span of all three cabinets. I use Becky Higgins' Page Dividers as clear labels. They lay on their side. {I hope that makes sense.} The cardstock lives in the <a href="http://www.stampnstorage.com/paper-holder-for-ikea/" target="_blank">Ikea size paper holders</a> from <a href="http://www.stampnstorage.com/" target="_blank">Stamp-n-Storage</a>. These Ikea paper holders originally did live in an Expedit, and the smaller build of these fit perfectly. If I had the larger ones I know they would not all have fit. This was one of the first areas I moved in, because I knew it would be a quick move-in with some fast, solid, visible results. Mercy, though! When I was sliding the Paper Holders in, I was holding my breath because another 1/2 inch in height on them and they would not have fit! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">My patterned paper is on the lower shelf of the same three units, because I access it more frequently than cardstock. It is in alphabetical order my manufacturer first, and then by collection name within that manufacturer. I use the discontinued Cropper Hopper thin paper folders and am so thankful to some friends that sent my way some of their abandoned ones! I did have to update my collection name paper dividers to restore order after my two year organizational "I'm moving and living in an apartment" hiatus. <i>{This is a common theme that will play out over and over, cabinet drawer by cabinet drawer.}</i> I also added manufacturer dividers the other day and I love this idea! I used more of the plastic school pocket folders, unfolded and cut length wise. I wish I had thought of it sooner. It gives me guidance on just where to head in this plethora of pretty paper to pull the collection I'm after. I can have all of these cabinet doors open to see it all together, or I can know which cabinet to go to based on a specific manufacturer or cardstock color I'm after. It's working perfectly!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Let's look up above the paper, shall we? This space is great storage for items seldom needed or infrequently used. I can reach it with my <a href="https://smile.amazon.com/Plastics-101-6BK-Black-Folds-Folding/dp/B00QTNAGVA/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1498434217&sr=8-5&keywords=101-6+black+ez+folds" target="_blank">small folding step stool</a>, but it's not like I want to be hopping up on that all the time. <i>{Mother gave me that little step stool one year for Christmas. Little did I know it would someday be perfect for Story Central!}</i> It seemed like the perfect space for some archival items: memorabilia, duplicate or non-scrapped photos, and some odds and ends for projects. The left cabinet holds a stack of seven Iris Cases full of memorabilia and ephemera from our dozen years of Walt Disney World park trips and cruises. I have a bin labeled for each park and for Disney Springs, and I have one for cruises, and one for just general Disney items for specific trips. I love that I can stack seven cases! They are all fairly lightweight, so getting one out from the pile isn't too big of a deal. To their right, I have some more Iris Cases which hold various things, like seasonal punches that I don't need all the time, or excess enamel dots, etc. Isn't it <i>Nirvana</i> that the cabinet width accommodates TWO stacks of Iris Cases!? Good Math + Lots of Planning = Storage Space Bliss. <i>{A decade of not being able to fit an Iris Case into an Expedit cubby will do that to a planner kind of gal!}</i> ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The center cabinet holds photos. These are photos that are "leftovers" from scrapping projects, or duplicates from the days of non-digi film. The clear cases on the right are <a href="https://www.containerstore.com/s/media-box/d?productId=10009241&q=dvd" target="_blank">Iris Media Cases</a> that I picked up from The Container Store. In my Scrap Central set-up, I had these photos stored in the Stacy Julian recommended "Category Drawers" using metal filing drawers. Those metal drawers were too heavy and too unwieldy for me, and as I contemplated where my "Category Drawers" would go in our new home, I knew there was no spare bedroom closet for them. So, knowing they had to fit into the wall of cabinets somewhere, I knew I needed to change their container. I stumbled on these Iris Media Cases right before moving to the apartment in 2015 that are designed for DVD's, but they fit photographs very well. I reworked the contents of four metal drawers (two of two-drawer metal card catalogs) into three Iris Media Cases. On the left are four Creative Memories Power Sort boxes. I eventually want to convert their contents to the Iris Media Cases. That will be a project for another year, to be sure. <i>{I will confess that the entire depth of this center unit was planned to accommodate the length of the Iris Media Case. As I measured all my things, this was the winner for the longest/deepest item.}</i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The right uppermost cabinet holds --- a big fat nothing! I found these <a href="https://www.containerstore.com/s/clear-document-cases/d?productId=10004054&q=iris%20large%20case" target="_blank">Iris Large Document Cases</a> - where else but at The Container Store?...Actually most Michael's also carry them and you can use a coupon....I was purely looking for a container for this size space that would hold things like 6 x 8 albums I bought and want to do, or long-term</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">items</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> {as in not working on anytime soon}. These types of things are currently in the garage. My plan is to pare down what is out there to what will fit inside these four cases. There is a small chance that I will swap these out for fourteen regular Iris Cases. I'm just not sure. I like having the option to use these cases and could use these four, or two of them with seven Iris Cases....Not finishing this cabinet has held me up for awhile, and I've just decided to move past it. Whatever goes up there clearly isn't something I need right now, as it's all been in the garage for seven months....</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Okay, let's move over to the left bank of cabinets near the window. This section is the one that is closest to where I work at my desk, and so I was very mindful about having items in this bank of cabinets closes to me that I work with frequently, whereas it's "twin" on the right side contains the opposite - things I do not access as often. I tend to think in "zones" and wanted all like items together, or in very close proximity. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Starting at the top of the uppermost small cabinet, I have chosen to separate out all of my holiday theme paper, and accessories. This was a logical choice for me because when I work on the holidays, I work on them in large batches. And when I am not working on them, I don't need my holiday stash down in the prime real estate area. The top small cabinet shelf contains Iris Cases of themed embellishments that would be used specific to that holiday. I labeled them using leftover 13 x 19 photo paper and chose the <a href="http://www.dafont.com/another-typewriter.font" target="_blank">Another Typewriter font</a>. To the right of those Iris Cases is a Fridge Binz that holds holiday 6 x 6 paper pads. I chose the Fridge Binz that had the pull out handle at the front, and that is one side and not divided. I picked up a big stack of aqua plastic school folders at the 2016 back to school sale and a la Jennifer McGuire, I cut them up for dividers and eliminated all the previous red dividers from my organizing. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Moving down into a larger cabinet, you will find it's top shelf holds all of my holiday theme paper in the famous <a href="https://www.containerstore.com/s/multi-purpose-bins/d?productId=10022942&q=magazine%20storate" target="_blank">large Multi-Purpose Bins from The Container Store</a> and they are stored and sorted in the chronology of the year. Left to right: Winter, Valentine's Day, Spring/Easter, July 4th, Halloween, Autumn, Thanksgiving, Christmas. I clearly do not need to buy any more Christmas paper. Two of the five bins are Christmas. ACKKK!! ;-) I envision when I get ready to scrap Christmas that I will pull down those two bins and flip through and find what I'd like to work with. Within all five bins, I have the papers sorted by manufacturer and by collection. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">On the far right of the holiday paper is a small Multi Purpose Bin that hold letter size stamp sheets that need a day of reckoning, and a 3-ring notebook holds my Embossing Folder samples, another candidate for a makeover. I don't know if I'll ever cut apart those large Alpha's....This bin works great for now. These stamps are here because all of my smaller stamp sets are just below this. And I'm toying with removing my embossing samples from the 3-ring and placing them in with the folders, but then again I like being able to flip through and easily see all my options...But I have a dear friend Laura that did the most beautiful full-size embossing folder samples in dove gray, and so I may very well keep the binder as is for a quick flip, but additionally make a full size sample in gray to place in the Avery Elle envelope with the folder. Decisions, decisions! Okay, moving on! ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">On the second shelf in that cabinet, you will find all of my clear stamps, my dies, and my embossing folders. Using the <a href="https://www.containerstore.com/s/deep-divided-fridge-binz/d?productId=11006317&q=divided%20fridge%20binz&sortField=low_price&sortOrder=A" target="_blank">divided Fridge Binz with handles</a> is about the best system I've ever seen. I continually thank Jennifer McGuire for this bright idea! Converting to this system is an overwhelming but completely worthwhile endeavor. The two left divided Fridge Binz are stamps, the third one holds dies and embossing folders. To their right stands a thin Container Store Multi-Purpose Utility Bin, and it holds letter sized vellum, Neenah paper, and some 12 x 12 Fancy Pants stamp sets. That wraps up the upper cabinet section and takes us to the secretary-like cubby that is the centerpiece for each of the five cabinet units.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This cubby is the genius to me of this design, if I say so myself: I can open and fold down the door to have an extended work surface, and when done I can close the door and have it look like a normal cabinet. The fold down door measures at 36 inches off the ground, standard kitchen countertop height. When I want, I can add just under 15 feet of countertop space by opening all of these doors. I have experienced this now twice as I worked to do multiple layouts and I have to say I love having the space to spread things out. I love having some stand up work space {that is not my kitchen counter!}, and some sit down work space!!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When it came to deciding what would live in these cubbies, I tried to think of what moments in my scrapping process did I need to look at things and select things? Or what needed its own dedicated workspace when, for instance, your desk is covered in paper and you need to do something else for your project? Stamping was a clear candidate! My first cubby holds all of my ink pads, and that is why I placed the bins of stamps right above this cubby - for easy access, and to create a stamping zone. For my ink pads themselves, I deliberated long and hard, and finally went with the</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.stampnstorage.com/slim-ink-pad-holder/" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: x-large;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Stamp-n-Storage Slim Ink Pad Holder</span></a> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">that houses 72 ink pads. I do not stamp profusely, and feel my current collection of 72 inks is quite ample for my needs. I'm not a stamper that scrapbooks, I'm a scrapbooker that {occasionally} stamps. You'll also glimpse my Sizzix Secret Stamper Tool at the back on the right, and my 12 x 12 Misti to the left of the ink pad holder - again trying to keep all like things together. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">On the far right of this cubby is a spinning spice rack of paints and daubers. Just a very few - I don't use them too often. To that left you will find a Ranger spinner that holds all of my roller stamps. Between the roller stamps and my ink pads sits my WRMK Evolution. It is placed there because it needs space on either side for the platform to run through, and the plug is just behind it, for the times I want to use its motor. I can pull it straight out to use and then push it straight back. I love that it folds up and is space saving. A little <a href="https://www.amazon.com/OXO-PerfectPull-Dispenser-Weighted-Plate/dp/B0067GKHQS/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1498167150&sr=8-1&keywords=xo+wipe+dispenser" target="_blank">OXO bin</a> of Kirkland wipes from Costco is on standby for quick clean-up of my stamps. I love that little bin! {Thank you 3kidmama!} My trimmer also rests here because I use it all the time, and stamp so seldom. I had originally planned for my trimmer to have its own entire cubby, but that felt like a big waste of space. Putting my trimmer here sort of violates one of my rules of crowding, but since my <a href="http://www2.fiskars.com/Products/Crafting-and-Sewing/Paper-Trimmers/ProCision-Rotary-Bypass-Trimmer-12" target="_blank">Fiskars Procision Rotary Bypass Trimmer</a> folds up, it stores here well enough and I feel good about the allocation of space here. <i>{I always reserve the right to change my mind after a few long spurts of making layouts but I have tested it about four times and am pleased with its placement thus far.}</i> ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Okay. Almost through the first cabinet unit. Two sections of three drawers are below the fold down cubby. The left tower of drawers in this section are simple: journal cards and tags in the top one, 6 x 6 and 8 x 8 pads in the bottom two. Journal cards larger than 3x4 sorted by color, tags and journal circles sorted by type and color and placed in the 4 x 6 Iris photo cases, paper pads sorted by manufacturer and then alphabetically by collection. October Afternoon 8 x 8 pads are larger and are on the right side of the very bottom drawer. These OA pads have also been torn apart and are sorted by color. It works well for me this way. I want to tear apart ALL of my 6 x 6 paper pads to sort by color, but I'm wishy washy on how this would work, and more often than not I use the 6 x 6 as companion pieces to layouts with that collection, whereas I use the October Afternoon 8 x 8 sheets on their own usually....It seems to make the most sense to keep the 6 x 6 by collection. So, that's paper pads for now.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The second tower of drawers in the first unit has four drawers. The top drawer holds "project life" cards and various 3 x 4 and 4 x 6 journaling cards. These are stored in drawer liners and a Fridge Binz and they need some organizing, as they are a bit of a hot mess. I think I want to sort the 3 x 4 project life cards by color and/or theme. My goal was to be able to open the top two drawers in this section and easily see all my journaling product. The second drawer holds 4 x 6 Iris photo cases full of various types of embellishments (non-chipboard). I need to go through these, too, and make sure they are sorted logically, and then label them. <i>{It seems like for all the categorical organizing projects I did, there are as many more left to do!}</i> The third drawer holds various stamping tools that I didn't want floating loose up top in my stamp section: cleaner, cleaning pad, acrylic blocks. The fourth and bottom drawer holds my heat gun, my embossing powders and tools, and some cats eye inks and ink blending tools.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">That takes us to the three center units, and I'll start with the far left one. We covered the top of these already {memorabilia and paper}, so we can start at the fold down cubby level and work our way down. I treated this center section as one big section, so I'm going to share multiple drawers at once. <i>{I did this simply to help me keep up where everything goes!}</i> ;-) Again, these cubbies close to me should hold things I use often, and things that need a little work surface. This first section is for embellishments that are theme related, but not holiday related: school, birthday, spring, etc. These are stored in The Container Store's Project Cases. I bought these back in 2009 when I worked my way through a <a href="http://wookiemouse.blogspot.com/2009/05/let-challenge-begin-overview.html" target="_blank">29 week organization challenge hosted by a Pea, Wookiemouse</a>. They have discontinued these cases and that makes me hold on to mine tightly. Iris makes a similar but somewhat less appealing product: their <a href="https://www.amazon.com/IRIS-Portable-Project-Buckle-Clear/dp/B00008XPQF" target="_blank">Iris Portable Project Case</a>. There is also a big bin of basic patterned paper in various monochromatic dots and stripes stored in another Multi-Purpose bin. This is the hybrid of cardstock and patterned paper, and I keep it separate to pull to match to collection patterned papers for projects. An Iris medium Document Case holds all of my Travel embellishments. It's larger than the project case, and holds Summer and Travel. I am working on a Die Cut 3-ring binder and a Chipboard Chip 3-ring binder. When those are done, they will live in this cubby with these project cases.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The second cubby holds my sticker binders. I have six currently. Binders one and two hold my sticker sheets that are less than 12 x 12, like all of the October Afternoon sticker sheets that were companions to their paper collection. One of these binders holds stickers that are more blank than not. I call these journaling stickers. The second one holds stickers that are more decorative and have phrases on them. I call these - wait for it - phrase stickers. ;-) The next two binders hold full size 12 x 12 sticker sheets from collections. I store my 12 x 12 sticker sheets in 3-ring albums and use scrapbook page protectors for the sleeves. I have these sorted alphabetically by the name of the collection. Why? If I'm working with a certain paper, I obviously know the name of that collection. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">So, if I need, for instance, the sticker sheet that goes with the Carta Bella Toy Box collection, I would grab the binder that is labeled K-Z and flip back to the T section. It is how I work. The key for you is knowing how YOU work. The fifth binder is like the third and fourth, but it is my holiday collections that I've segregated, just like I have segregated the paper collections. Again, I don't want to be flipping through Christmas if I'm working on random May photos. The sixth 3-ring binder holds 12 x 12 Alphabet Stickers that are completely and only alphabet letters. {Think all of the old October Afternoon sticker sheets.} There is also a Fridge Binz that holds all of my small alphabet stickers. My goal here was to get all of my stickers in one place.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">To make adding sticker sheets easy, I put one collection's set in one sleeve. The decorative element sheet is on the right sleeve, and the alpha sheet that matches it would be behind it. You can see below the sticker sheets of two collections on one binder opening. This is a bit unnerving, but the trade-off is good when considering ease of putting new things away. Also, I use the shapes more than the letters, so that drove what went on "top" for me...</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The third cubby, the second one away from the right wall, holds something that I want easy access to, but that I don't necessarily use all at one time. It holds - don't judge - ;-) all of my Disney supplies: paper, small paper pads, embellishments (washi, brads, die cuts, stickers). I also have two multi-layout Disney kits from Scrapbook Generation in this cubby. All of my Disney stuff is right here. I tend to work on Disney pages in spurts and wanted it all grouped together. My hope now that my room is settled is to really crank out some Disney pages. I have so many amazing photos I want to scrap. I have 3 Multi Purpose Bins on hand to rework the papers and projects out of stacked Iris Cases into those bins that are more accessible. I need to tidy this up though and that's for another weekend soon. This should execute fairly quickly; this is just one more project that I could have held up this blog post for, but decided to press on regardless. Repeat with me: perfection is overrated! ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Staying in the three unit center of the cabinet wall, the top two rows of drawers hold punches. Yep. Six drawers of punches. I love them. I use them. I lament that they are no longer really made. My mantra for this room, remember, is easy access, no crowding. So, my border punches are in the three drawers on top. My shape punches are below them. I can see all of my punches very quickly and easily. After I grab a punch, I can punch it right there on the fold down door, and then put the punch away. It's a very accommodating placement. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">There are fifteen shallow drawers in this center section. The punches take six. The remaining nine hold various small embellishments: enamel dots, washi tape, veneer, decorative brads, metal brads, buttons, flair, chipboard, and miscellaneous things like Maya Road sheers, little felt things, metal embellishments, and ephemera... These nine drawers TOOK. THE. MOST. TIME. to organize because I needed to match the size of the drawer, and I needed to change in many instances how these embellishment collections were sorted. I worked long and hard to make all of these categories sorted by color. But, I think that should really pay off because when I go to finish up a page, I am looking for certain colors to pop out. Opening these drawers up and seeing all the rainbows of color makes me super happy. You'll see enamel dots, bling, veneer, brads, flair, washi tape, chipboard - a rainbow of choices!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And just like that, we are to the far right and final cabinet unit. This entire unit houses things that I don't use very often, with one exception: my typewriter. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The top shelf of this holds six Iris cases that hold various projects that are ongoing and use distinctive collections. To the right of the Iris cases is a good find that was the result of maybe my fifth trip to The Container Store - <a href="https://www.containerstore.com/s/our-tall-shoe-box/d?productId=11000728&q=large%20shoe%20box" target="_blank">their Tall Shoe Box</a>. It's dimensions were perfect for this space, and the amounts of flowers and ribbons I have. The top one holds all of my flowers that may come back in some day. ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The second shelf holds <a href="https://www.containerstore.com/s/bigso-cherry-red-stockholm-paper-drawers/d?productId=11003857&q=paper%20drawers" target="_blank">Bigso Stockholm Paper Drawers</a> that I use to store the boys' school photos, 5 x 7's, and 8 x 10's. There's a drawer for each son, one for family, and one for Heritage photos. This is part of Stacy Julian's Library of Memories system. The three Tall Shoe Boxes to the right of that hold twine and ribbons: neutral, warm, and cool color assortments. A few sugar dispensers from Walmart hold my larger spools of twine. You can see the blue one. Red and brown are behind it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The third shelf holds my <a href="https://www.scrapbook.com/store/p-bta-204brwn.html" target="_blank">Pioneer 3-Up Photo Albums</a>, another key feature of Stacy Julian's Library of Memories. Having a shelf tall enough for these albums as another MUST HAVE in my room design. These albums hold the prints of photos I want to scrap from 2009-2014. I have 1/2 of 2015 printed and holding in an Iris photo keeper, and I haven't printed in bulk my 2016 photos. Yes, I'm behind, but believe me, I've got plenty to do! The little labels on these binders are temporary, and that is why they aren't fancy. The idea is that you are constantly emptying one album and filling another up. Years ago, I got my albums at Costco online. They are a little bit harder to find now. Look for 3-rings and not spirals.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The cubby in this unit holds my typewriter and since the fold down door is at counter top height, I can just pull the typewriter out, type right here, and then slide it back. There is a plug in the far left and the far right cubbies, and the plug is what dictated the typewriter's placement here. Now, this little jewel is like my new favorite thing. I walk at lunch in the warehouse and passed for over a year an IBM Selectric, sitting abandoned. I finally asked about it, and was given it free! I paid $85 to get it serviced and I. ADORE. IT. It's the typewriter I've been looking for! I have two now to get rid of. I've already sold my vintage Royal. It is also wonderful to pare down on the typewriters. This IBM gives me the ease of electric and correcting, and marries that convenience with the vintage feel, based on the ball elements I use. Okay. Enough gushing. My sewing machine also is in this cubby, again for the plug access. On both of these items, I wanted to be able to easily use them if I want/need to. I do hope to use my machine more. Having it out and accessible I hope will do the trick. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And that takes us down to the last two units of drawers. Keeping my sewing things together, I put all of my thread and hand sewing tools in the top drawer of the left tower. <i>{This unit is symmetrical to the far left unit, so there are two towers of drawers in this unit also. I'm working down the left tower now, which has four drawers.}</i> Second drawer: Thickers. Easy peasy. They fit perfectly. Sorted by color and placed in the 6 x 12 Ziploc bags to ensure they stay closed and are easily accessed. I don't use these a lot, I don't buy them a lot, and it's because I use my Cameo so much and sort of think Thickers can get expensive. The third drawer currently holds Rub-Ons. When, if ever, I finish my Die Cut Binder, I may convert these to a 3-ring notebook and put them up near my sticker binders, or up near my project cases. They are not used much. Part of that is because I cannot see them. I'd like to use them, so I know I need to get them organized and easily visible. <i>{This whole process has been a huge exercise in thinking about how I work, how I reach for things, what is working, what isn't...}</i> For now, they are dumped here. The fourth drawer is another dump: miscellaneous card supplies. I don't make cards that often. I have the two bottom drawers over here relegated to card supplies. I need to purge, organize, and then use the stuff. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The last three drawers!! The right tower, the one closest to the wall is what is left, and then it will be a wrap! The top drawer holds my coloring supplies and Bible journaling supplies. Two more things I'd like to do more! I actually have a sort of local scrapbook store that teaches Bible Journaling and I'm hoping to go to their Intro class and discover some mixed media options. They have a great line up of regular classes, and I'm really wanting to dive deeper into this! The second drawer holds miscellaneous items: my giant Xyron 500 {that I cannot bear to let go but seldom use} and its refills and cartridges, my box of extra Schneider journaling pens {Thank you so much, Pink!}, and some extra foam adhesive, an old diaper to wipe down photos, a dymo label maker...real important stuff here! ;-) Then the bottom drawer is a hot mess of cardmaking supplies - card kits, cards I've already made to send out, card bases, envelopes.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The cardmaking supplies have kind of held me up. I wanted to roll out a perfect room. Guess what? Mary Poppins never showed up! So, I tried my best for "Spit Spot", and fell just a tad short of perfection. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The road to get here was full of many hours of moving things, purging things, sorting things, reorganizing things, cataloging things in Evernote. I've sort of done the 2009 Wookiemouse Challenge again! ;-) I've gone through everything and this room started out completely empty. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I decided it's time to consider it done: roll out the room introduction, defer any unfinished organizing, and dive into making layouts. It's been my joy to get to this point in the room, and I feel an ever greater sense of joy as I contemplate now crafting the good story I love.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I've had so much fun sharing with you </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">my new Story Central </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">on this "Fifty Cent Tour". Thanks for tagging along with me on this launching of a new chapter!</span></div>
penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-31733630501584371472017-06-24T21:29:00.000-05:002017-07-19T15:18:28.143-05:00Story Central: The Fifty Cent Tour - Part One<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I'll be the first to confess that I have been waiting for this room to be </span><b style="color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;">perfect</b><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">. To be </span><b style="color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;">completely</b><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> finished. For everything to be completely </span><b style="color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;">organized</b><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">. </span><i style="color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;">And then it dawned on me</i><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> - an organic, active scrapbook room is </span><i style="color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;">never</i><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> any of the above! So, I've done as much as I can to get it all spiffied up for you and to eliminate as many piles of clutter and chaos as possible, and I say now it's time to roll out the intro and move on to scrapping! Overall, I am loving the light airy feel of the room and it feels both calming and energetic to me. The paint is </span><a href="http://www.ppgpittsburghpaints.com/color/paint-colors/harmony/aqua-sparkle-354-1" style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;" target="_blank">Pittsburgh Paint Aqua Sparkle</a><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, the same as we have throughout the house. This color nearly washes out in full sunlight, and deepens nicely as the sun sets. I love how it pairs with the </span><a href="https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/color-overview/find-your-color/color/hc-154/hale-navy?color=HC-154" style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;" target="_blank">Benjamin Moore Hale Navy</a><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> on the cabinets.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I shared a bit of the design history on <a href="http://pennyscraps.blogspot.com/2017/06/story-central-simply-amazing.html" target="_blank">my last post</a>. As I worked slowly and methodically through the design element of the room, I studied my tried and true scrapbooking processes and honed in on my overarching desires for this room:</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for there to be plenty of countertop workspace</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for there to be areas where I could stand and work</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for there to be a nice L-shaped seated workspace </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for everything to have a logical and orderly home</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for there to be enough space to hold everything {in my last house, I had scrap supplies in 2 rooms besides my scrap room}</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for my big pieces of equipment to have permanent homes and for their to be plenty of plugs for electric access {I currently have fourteen items that require plugs!}</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for the room to be really well lit, day and night {As a full-time working woman, I love to make use of my weekday evenings}</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for the room to be beautiful</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for there to be a spot for Truman and Steve to come sit with me</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for the room to not look like a bunch of scrapbook throw-up</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for the room to bring me joy just by seeing it, or by sitting in it</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for there to be no any piles anywhere</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for storage of things to not be crowded</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for the room to truly be an expression of me</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for there to be a nice spot for a big TV, yet not have the TV be the focal point</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">for the room to aesthetically flow with the rest of the house {and for it not be an eyesore to me or my hubs}</span></li>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I had - <i>as usual it seems</i> - a lot of demands and desires! I have to say that I could not be more pleased with how it has turned out. I love daylight near me as I scrap. I love being able to sit at my desk and see into the rest of the house, or swivel slightly to my right to see outside. I love having the accessibility to so much countertop workspace, and I love that it can fold up and be out of sight in a second. I love that the room doesn't look like a scrapbook room. I love that it is the best scrapbook room I've ever had. And I love that everything has it's own perfect home, and I can access it fairly quickly.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The doorway and the window of course dictated the placement of the wall of cabinets, and determined the best spot for my desk workspace. Pairing a built-in desk with my antique bread and butter desk seemed like a match made in heaven. It gives me the desired L-space, it puts me near the window, it allows me to face out of the room, and it allows me to face the wall mounted TV. You know, a girl's gotta' be able to see those Property Brothers and Law & Order detectives when she scraps, right? ;-) Bonus - the Apple TV is hooked up behind the wall mounted TV, so I can also YouTube or Netflix the day away if I desire. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The built-in desk area features a pull-down and hidden keyboard tray, and three drawers. My keyboard tray is so large that it also doubles as a spot for some basic office supplies. The top drawer is where I decided to store my everyday working tools. In reality, the Making Memories carousel that I love so much takes up a fair chunk of desktop real estate, and it's also a hot mess to behold. When it came time to give it a makeover into the new color palette, I decided instead to let it rest. I found a cheap desk drawer liner <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/70177222/" target="_blank">at Ikea called the Stodja Flatware tray</a> and it fits perfectly and works like a charm. My Go To tools are within easy reach. This has been a great trade-off for me. The second drawer holds my scanner. The third drawer holds my Epson R3000 workhorse printer.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Above my built-in desk, I have a small section of upper cabinets. As a nostalgic nod to Scrap Central, I once again had three bookshelves placed above my computer area. A small cabinet on each side bookends this shelf section. </span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The upper left cabinets hold some basics: my Scrapbook Generation sketch and class binders, my Epson PictureMate Charm printer (I measured - when it dies someday, the new model will fit there, too) ;-), my bin of markers (stored in a flour container from The Container Store - thank you, Tasha, for this tip!), with extra printer ink tucked behind the markers. My red 3-ring binders are another nostalgic nod to Scrap Central. Who can forget that pop of red everywhere against those white cabinets?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The center section has my collection of angels, which I talked about in <a href="http://pennyscraps.blogspot.com/2017/06/theres-no-place-like-home.html" target="_blank">this blog post</a> and I am loving their pop against the tiffany blue risers and the navy shelves. Steve had Home Depot cut down fence posts to 24 inch increments for the angels' risers. The back, taller riser is just two fence posts stacked on top of one another. He only did one coat of paint, thinking a more rustic look would work. I agreed! Annie Sloan Chalk Paint {ASCP} Provence or Duck Egg Blue is the color he used on the risers, the lamp, and the sideboard under the TV. We have fallen head over heels in love with ASCP! I had the idea to do risers, he had the idea to use fence posts. We make such a dynamic duo. ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The upper right cabinets hold class binders: Karen Russell's Photographer's Workshop, Stacy Julian's Library of Memories, Ali Edwards' Yesterday and Today, Cathy Zieske's Design Your Life, and a Photoshop manual. The day may come when I'm okay having PDF's of these. For now, I have the prints outs, and want them available to reference. The second shelf holds some scrapbooking idea books that I aim to get around to someday, and some copy paper and photo paper. The top shelf has two mesh CD baskets (from The Container Store) that hold extra label maker tape, a regular sized stapler, and a scotch tape dispenser, and perhaps my secret stash of Christmas stocking candy. I eat it very slowly and live with other people who do not! ;-) That top shelf</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> also holds some beloved older copies of Simple Stories magazines that I just cannot bring myself to toss.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I love that my cabinet guys got the height of the built-in desktop to very nearly perfectly line up with the height of my antique desk. Hubby stained the desktop, and I sanded it and varnished it. It feels so smooth. I need to get a piece of plexiglass cut for it, but man, oh man, I do love rubbing my hands across the top. Hubby also very tentatively drilled the hole for the cables. Boy, oh boy! They used a harder maple wood for the desktop since we were going to stain it, and it was very nerve wracking to watch that drill bit fighting its way through the wood. Two simple <a href="https://www.target.com/p/picture-ledge-walnut-threshold-153/-/A-50952520" target="_blank">picture ledge shelves from Target</a> seemed to be the perfect way to showcase my tiny collection of owls from my husband, my sons, and my cousins. Those are a story for another day, but I love them peeking at me from their perfect perch. The lamp is an older lamp that was red, white, and blue in its Americana glory at our previous home, and Steve painted that for me, too. Its simple white shade is also from Target.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Underneath the built-in desk, I retained usage of my <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40196241/" target="_blank">small Alex drawer from Ikea</a>. It is just the right amount of storage space for work in process, unfinished work, Silhouette supplies, and some tools I seldom use, but don't want to toss. It also holds my ARC binder of scraps. {Bless you dear Janet for this incredible idea. It is so wonderful.} I did not want anything under this desk, but having the Alex drawer is a compromise. I want things accessible and not crowded, and until I use up some things, or get rid of some things, I need the space it provides. I've pondered painting it navy to match, but I don't think many house guests will notice it, so let's just keep Alex and his drawers our little secret. I really did not want any extra pieces in my room, but I think the functionality of this outweighs the form. To the left of it are two Iris Bin file folder cases. More projects in process. #notenoughtimeintheday</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">My little antique desk is one of my favorite things in the whole house. You might remember I bought it at the spring 2013 Round Top Antiques Fair and it was used in <a href="http://pennyscraps.blogspot.com/2013/09/live-from-scrap-central.html" target="_blank">Scrap Central</a> for two years. The drawers in it are so deep, and as a piece of furniture that once roamed the ranges in the back of covered wagons, I feel it is full of story and life. I imagine the days when those drawers held tea towels, or wooden cooking spoons, or treasured dishes. The left one today holds spare adhesives, and the right one holds some loose paper to jot notes on, and my ATG gun, and some old catalogs to use as "glue catchers" when I put dot roller on some elements. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It's a perfect size as it was a primitive dining table. It has nice depth and perfect width. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It's Bread and Butter name comes from the way the corners are constructed. The table top pops off when you remove wooden dowels and that would allow it to pack down into a covered wagon.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I decided, in the spirit of the new room, to freshen up the top of the desk, changing out my trademark red mat to a clear, translucent gray. My magnetic sheets still reside under it. The look works well enough for me day to day, and it allows me to easily clear the desktop if we are having a gathering. I gave my old Ott lamp to a friend, after first claiming the bulb and placing it in this darling <a href="https://www.target.com/p/hudson-industrial-table-lamp-black-threshold-153/-/A-17296925" target="_blank">seeded glass lamp</a> from Target. The amber cast of the globe of the old Ott lamp was too much for me. I am really enjoying the clean lines and clear glass of the seeded glass lamp. My antique Ball jar - another Round Top find from probably the late '80's - now holds artificial tulips and their pop of yellow gives me joy. The tulips may give way later to sunflowers. Depends. I love tulips so much they may just reign for quite awhile. I grabbed this little Cinderella movie quote sign from JoAnn's in April. The quote is a great reminder to have in front of your keyboard. </span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I kept my chair the same. Luckily when Steve gave me my </span><a href="http://www.hermanmiller.com/products/seating/performance-work-chairs/aeron-chairs.html" style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif;" target="_blank">Herman Miller Aeron Chair</a><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> for Valentine's several years ago, I went with a neutral color. I never tire of sitting in this chair.</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Not only do I love sitting at my desk area, I am absolutely loving the view. <a href="https://www.aimeeweaverdesigns.com/" target="_blank">Aimee Weaver Designs</a> created my custom sign for me. I love that she sent me a PDF for approval before she began painting it. I designed it in such a size as to visually take over the TV and to become the focal point of that wall. I contemplated for a long time covering up the TV with a Pottery Barn mirrored cabinet, but it's so common anymore to see a big TV hanging on the wall that I just decided to leave it as is, for simplicity sake, and work around it. I thought my cross collection would be a great companion accessory to the Aimee Weaver sign, and felt that they could together surround the TV in a way that dominated the wall, and set the tone for the room.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn5zZTcAIj_wXVClKLF7xKIxHM5hfvrYV94Z2rndEKiIKEEvpzHufPHFQrrYtKQET9J1Rzt8qcxcBbmfrDCbhNPmtC0JOO-o2auCrK_aJvwRkiRB_AdrHBy0Rw1zlsyMchOngp9npNbtXE/s1600/IMG_8170.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: -webkit-standard; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn5zZTcAIj_wXVClKLF7xKIxHM5hfvrYV94Z2rndEKiIKEEvpzHufPHFQrrYtKQET9J1Rzt8qcxcBbmfrDCbhNPmtC0JOO-o2auCrK_aJvwRkiRB_AdrHBy0Rw1zlsyMchOngp9npNbtXE/s640/IMG_8170.JPG" width="640" /></a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I absolutely love how it turned out. Steve hung the big Oceans sign from Aimee Weaver first, and then I spread the crosses out on the kitchen island. His retail eye kind of paired them, either by shape or size or material, and he would bring them in two at a time and, sitting at my desk, I would tell him which one would go where. It was such a joy to hang them all at one sitting and bring about a somewhat cohesive display. In Murphy, they went on the wall one by one as they came home to me. Each cross has a story and I love seeing them up now. They were in storage, along with my angels, for nearly two years. I love how organically the wall happened, and feel like it's just perfect.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Just to their right, I have two little galvanized shelves from Magnolia Market that I turned on their side to hold my small collection of vintage and antique cameras. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I think I might want to grow this collection.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I should grab a couple more shelves while I can, but it might already be too late. I searched for them to add the link and I no longer see them. I struggle with the concept that they compete with the cross wall, but Steve assures me they look good. Who's right? Me or him? ;-) The cameras come from junking road trips that he and I have taken, except the exquisite red camera, complete with its flashbulb, which is a 2016 Mother's Day present from my youngest son. He found it on the square in McKinney.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Now, on to my sideboard! Some of my dear friends helped me figure this out! I started out in this room with an antique enamelware-top table next to the chaise, but long before the chaise was reupholstered, I knew that chippy base of the table would clash horribly with the fabric I had chosen for the chaise, and I couldn't bear the idea of the chippy paint going away. We re-purposed that table in its original glory to the kitchen and it's a perfect landing spot for the mail. I then went in search of a second perfect piece at The Frisco Mercantile, after the first perfect piece that I found got away from me. {And truth be told, I like the second perfect piece better than the first one, so sometimes all is well that ends well.} </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This little guy came home in a cream color, but once again, ASCP to the rescue. Two coats of paint by Steve, some distressing and sanding by me, and then a coat of dark wax by Steve, and voila' - my statement accessory piece. It provides some storage, and more importantly a perch for a decaf cup of Snickernut coffee, if I ever get the chance to actally sit in my chair. ;-) The 3-ring album binders on the shelf hold my Scrapbook Generation kit club layouts. I mean to make my way through those!! But it will take me awhile, so I had to {compulsively} change out the binders from Becky Higgins' Project Life Kiwi album to the newer and pretty <a href="https://www.scrapbook.com/store/ac-380563.html?t12-13=becky+higgins" target="_blank">Project Life Navy Weave album</a>. The navy boxes to their right are <a href="https://www.containerstore.com/s/bigso-navy-stockholm-office-storage-boxes/d?productId=10017274&q=bigso%20navy%20office%20storage%20box" target="_blank">Bigso Navy Stockholm Office Storage Boxes from The Container Store</a> and the aqua box in between them is a <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50323776/" target="_blank">Tjena box from Ikea</a>. The sideboard drawer holds my 13 x 19 and 12 x 12 printer paper, my label maker, some cords, and some extra 12 x 12 and 6 x 12 bags that I use as needed for stash storage and organization.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I wanted to keep the top of the sideboard fairly clean and not have too much on it since it is right up against - and would compete visually with - the cross wall. I have a large vintage wire basket that I grabbed at Round Top the year I bought the Bread and Butter Table. I wanted a place for some books I'm reading through and the wire basket on top of this sideboard seemed as good a spot as any. I also have secretly hidden inside this wire basket my Sonos Sound System Amp. I love hiding things like that! On either side of the wire basket, I have some antique books that were my most favorite gift ever from my mother-in-law. One of my Annie's sits on a stack of four books, and my favorite antique camera sits on a stack of three books. I think at some point if I can find some navy books, I'll change them out, or perhaps I can do some pretty paper book covers on these like my friends Joanna and Jonathan. ;-) This spot is just a little bit of decorative fun, and it doesn't feel cluttered to me right now. I enjoy it, with the exception of the green books really playing up the green in the Duck Egg Blue paint color....</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And then there's my beloved chicken chair. Sporting her new dress. <i>{I bought the infamous chicken chair on clearance from Ethan Allen for $300 as a 34th birthday present to myself. It went into our San Antonio bedroom, and it was the napping spot for many afternoons with one or both of my sons, and it was their perch while I dressed, and it was also their Time Out spot.}</i> Our oldest son was home for Father's Day weekend, and he was a little melancholy over the loss of the chicken chair. I told him I had saved some of the upholstery with which to make him a pillow, and he brightened up excitedly. See! I knew we all loved that chicken chair! Truman is impervious to the change, of course. He does love it as a perch, because when sitting there one can see out the front door onto the side of the porch and out into the street. {I have an extra yard of fabric that I need to get hemmed. It's been dubbed the Truman blanket, and it will protect the light white chair upholstery from his shenanigans, and I can wash it as needed. I'm rather proud of myself for thinking of this idea. The yard is the test yard I bought, and when placed on the chair, the wandering eye doesn't pick up on it.} </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This chaise is going to be a comfy and enjoyable spot to sit and talk on the phone, or sit and read, or even just to nap. I'll confess I've already had two short naps in it. Her dress may be different, but it sure sleeps just the same. ;-) My two red slipper chairs from Scrap Central have been moved up to our master bedroom. I hated to have them removed from my scrap space, but the harsh reality is that it's rare for me to have more than one visitor anymore when I'm scrapping. No fly-by teenage boys in and out anymore. Life moves on. The chaise is perfect and one chair fits the room better. I made the PennyScraps pillow at a class that my friend Sheila taught. I love it! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And now on to the money - the wall of cabinets. China has her great wall. I have mine. ;-) Come back tomorrow for Part Two of Story Central: The Fifty Cent Tour! </span></div>
penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-21940611907888339492017-06-21T10:02:00.002-05:002017-06-21T10:36:50.076-05:00Story Central: Simply Amazing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I began the task of scrapbooking in a rather modest fashion, as a 29-year-old young, stay-at-home mom, working at the breakfast table with a stash of supplies that would fit into a Craftstor bin. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Did you have one, too? I was rather proud of that bin. And then I required a second matching bin. And the coat closet, seldom used in the gulf winters of Houston, gave way to usher in a scrapbook closet. And before too much longer, the dining room became the formal living room, and the formal living room became a combination home office and scrapbook space. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And that was just in the first house. I am about 3 months short of the 23rd anniversary of that day I went to that fated, memorable Creative Memories class. ;-) And in that span of time, over the course of twenty-three years, I have worked in the above scenarios: in the corner nook of a playroom, on the side of a bedroom, in 1/3 of a bonus room, in one corner of a home gym, in 1/2 of a home office, and now, <i>finally</i>, in the fifth home in which I've scrapped, <i>and for the first time ever</i>, I finally have my own whole room, dedicated completely to me, designed exclusively for me. It feels like heaven.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Of course, my style of scrapbooking has evolved and tectonically shifted as much in all the time which spans over two decades, just as the space in which I've worked. Thank goodness. ;-) I'm so glad I live in a scrapbooking world that contains the goodness of Echo Park, Carta Bella, and Simple Stories, all companies that have come along in the last ten years or so, companies that have come along "after the scrapbooking boom ended".</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When we set about to move to our downsized nest, a downstairs study for my scrap space was on the <i>must have</i> list. When we found and selected the first house's floor plan, the Samuel, which had a 12 x 15 study, I was ecstatic. And then when we changed builders and neighborhoods, and selected and bought our Roseman floor plan, 8 months after the contract signing of the Samuel, it was delightful to discover a 12 x 15 study in it as well. 12 x 15!! So much real estate for my part-time love affair. I've come a long way from that scenario of one end of the breakfast table paired with a coat closet.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Not only was I granted the dream coming true of that much space all to myself, but I was given the permission, and the invitation, and the support by my husband to design my space. I initially planned to use stock Ikea cabinets. But as I thought about the Roseman and the finish-out of this second downsized house, the idea of a "second kitchen" right off the front door did not really appeal to me. I was driven back to Pinterest to start over on my design, and to find inspiration to go perhaps in even a new direction. Somewhere along the way, I saw a built-in secretary type of a bookcase, and my mind had a big light bulb moment, and I took to Numbers to draft up what would become my scrap space storage.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Two months. I spent over two months on the drawing. I studied everything I owned. I measured masses: height, width, quantity. I contemplated future buying potential, the need for expansion, my frequency of use, the need for accessibility.... Every little detail was poured over and over, and over with a fine tooth comb -- with 20 years of history and knowledge and desires and ideas. I decided I wanted to have an L-shaped workspace. I spaced out what would go where within the room. And then I took all of that information, and began slotting its space in the room, and into the designated wall of cabinetry. I finally got the design where I wanted it, and set back and waited for the house to be finished, and for it to become cabinet time.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When the house finished in November, I knew I would need to wait until after Steve's fiscal year-end for his assistance in overseeing the work, as his days off are more often than not weekdays. It was okay. I kept my design fresh in my mind, and busied myself with setting up the rest of the house, preparing for the holidays, having family over for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The New Year rolled around, and Steve's work fiscal year-end passed, and I set out to get quotes on my design. Four quotes. I went with the one that was in the middle on the pricing, and that offered a warranty on their work, and that when talking to him, felt like I was maybe talking to an uncle. Such a kind man. It took them seven long weeks from my meeting with them and paying my deposit on January 19 to the two-day installation which began on March 10. That's the time frame you're looking at for custom, complex work when you currently live in an area that has a booming home industry and several corporate relocations occurring.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Once I got a firm installation date set with my cabinet team, I could then schedule my painters. I had done my painter research during the long arduous weeks of the cabinet build. Armed with a few possible painting dates, I reached out and scheduled the painting. And then I set out to firm up my paint color choice. {Which selection I completely and absolutely adore 110%.} Benjamin Moore Hale Navy. My painting crew was as wonderful as my cabinet crew, but humidity and complications had the painting stretch from March 23 to March 31, and then I had to let the enamel based paint cure for <i>5 long days</i>. The saying "<i>Great things come to those who wait</i>" had never felt more authentic.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Finally, finally move-in day arrived! The displaced scrapbook stash -- that had come out of four Expedits and been piled in the dining room, the living room, the retreat, the hallway, and one son's bedroom -- could finally begin coming downstairs to its new and beloved home. And as the migration commenced, the utter neglect of my basic and fundamental stash organizational discipline quickly became evident, and quickly came home to roost. Practically everything I went to put away had to be tweaked either by collating new purchases into the existing supplies, or by purging some unwanted excess, or by changing its storage container, and all too frequently, tweaking had to occur in all three areas. That is I guess the ultimate consequence for shopping for twenty-two months and not being able to properly put things away. I had some wonderful friends during this time that kept encouraging me as I waded through my self-made abyss of bliss.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I made lists. I prioritized. I had to go slowly and intentionally, as I wanted everything to be logical and accessible. I religiously studied my initial drawing, and had to adapt the placement of some things as I dealt with the actual masses of certain collections and the finalized dimensions of the cabinet uppers and drawers. {This is where I encountered and slayed daily my inner Perfectionist demon.} Every day I worked hard to cross things off that list. Sometimes the desire to empty a space upstairs would override the next logical thing on the list. I was balancing clearing out the chaos upstairs with creating order downstairs. As I finished or completed an area, I would highlight it in orange to let me know that section was full and done.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I was constantly collating new purchases into an existing stash. Sometimes I would find <i>more</i> of something that had been packed away with the wrong type of items, and have to revamp new spaces again. Lots of late nights. Innumerable trips to The Container Store. {When the managers at two locations greet you, you know you've been in too many times.} A frequent trip to Joann's and Michael's and Hobby Lobby, looking for the ideal storage was sometimes the back-up plan for failed Container Store excursions. Always carrying with me the dimensions for my necessities de jour, and more often than not, carrying my cabinet print out in my purse.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Thankfully, my husband was so patient as I sat in my new digs night after night, listening to reruns of HGTV, Modern Family, Everybody Loves Raymond, and Law & Order episodes. Who am I kidding? He, too, was ready for the return of order to the house! He even patiently spent one evening with me working on a new brad storage system. Poor guy. His lack of fingernails made the end of his fingers so sore and tender after countless times of peeling brads off of cardboard backers. And he's done more than that. He's done just anything I've needed him to! The day recently when he did "my cross wall" was such a day of joy to me. My space is nearly done. There is one pile that haunts me. And, full disclosure, there is memorabilia in the garage to deal with. I count that more on the <i>Moving In/Housekeeping</i> side of the To Do list rather than the <i>Scrap Room Set-Up</i> To Do list. ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">But, the small, resolute, lingering, seemingly indestructible pile aside, I'm ready. I'm ready to be done. {<i>There will always be a pile, yes? It's time to move on! Yes? Yes!</i>} I'm ready to play. I'm ready to stop cataloging and purging and organizing and placing. I'm ready to cut paper, and play with photos. I'm ready to sail past the "soft opening" test runs </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">with my new space that</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I've experienced to</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> meet some project deadlines. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I'm ready to launch into the wide open clear spaces of unencumbered scrapping, endless projects going on, fun piles here and there, and embracing the freedom and the time to tell stories that need to be told, stories that are welling up inside of me, stories that are ready to be birthed.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">As I contemplated and pondered<b> Every.Little.Detail.</b> of this space, from supply storage to stash placement to workflow to lighting to paint colors to fabric choices to wall decor to cabinet knobs, I came to realize that <i>Scrap Central</i> wasn't going to be the name of my play space anymore. That sounded not only a little pedestrian, but a little too negative. This beautiful new space isn't to be about scraps, it's to be about stories! It's to be about memories, and photos, and sharing what I love about the people I love, and the very good life that I am blessed to live.</span></div>
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<span class="me" data-syllable="sto·ry" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 50px;">story</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 17px; line-height: 0; position: relative; top: -26px; vertical-align: baseline;">1</span></h1>
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<span class="pron spellpron" style="box-sizing: border-box;"> [<span class="dbox-bold" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-weight: bold;">stawr</span>-ee, <span class="dbox-bold" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-weight: bold;">stohr</span>-ee] </span></div>
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<section class="def-pbk ce-spot" data-collapse-expand="{"target": ".def-set", "type": "def"}" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif;"><header class="luna-data-header" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="dbox-pg" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 20px;">noun</span>, <span class="dbox-pg" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 20px;">plural </span><span class="dbox-bold" data-syllable="sto·ries." style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-weight: bold;">stories.</span></header><div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">1.</span><br />
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a narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader; tale.</div>
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<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">2.</span><br />
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a fictitious tale, shorter and less elaborate than a novel.</div>
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<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">3.</span><br />
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such narratives or tales as a branch of literature:<br />
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<span class="dbox-example" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">song and story.</span></div>
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<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">4.</span><br />
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the plot or succession of incidents of a novel, poem, drama, etc.:<br />
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<span class="dbox-example" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The characterizations were good, but the story was weak.</span></div>
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<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">5.</span><br />
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a narration of an incident or a series of events or an example of these that is or may be narrated, as an anecdote, joke, etc.</div>
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<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">6.</span><br />
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a narration of the events in the life of a person or the existence of a thing, or such events as a subject for narration:<br />
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<span class="dbox-example" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">the story of medicine; the story of his life.</span></div>
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<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">7.</span><br />
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a report or account of a matter; statement or allegation:<br />
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<span class="dbox-example" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">The story goes that he rejected the offer.</span></div>
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<div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">8.</span><br />
<div class="def-content" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-left: 37px;">
<a class="dbox-xref dbox-roman" href="http://www.dictionary.com/browse/news-story" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #307dbc; display: inline; text-decoration-line: none;">news story</a>.</div>
</div>
<div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">9.</span><br />
<div class="def-content" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-left: 37px;">
a lie or fabrication:<br />
<div class="def-block def-inline-example" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #979797;">
<span class="dbox-example" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-style: italic;">What he said about himself turned out to be a story.</span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">10.</span><br />
<div class="def-content" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-left: 37px;">
<span class="dbox-italic" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-style: italic;">Obsolete. </span><a class="dbox-xref dbox-roman" href="http://www.dictionary.com/browse/history" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #307dbc; display: inline; text-decoration-line: none;">history</a>.</div>
</div>
</section><section class="def-pbk ce-spot" data-collapse-expand="{"target": ".def-set", "type": "def"}" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif;"><header class="luna-data-header" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="dbox-pg" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 20px;">verb (used with object)</span>, <span class="dbox-bold" data-syllable="sto·ried, " style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-weight: bold;">storied, </span><span class="dbox-bold" data-syllable="sto·ry·ing." style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-weight: bold;">storying.</span></header><div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">11.</span><br />
<div class="def-content" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-left: 37px;">
to ornament with pictured scenes, as from <a class="dbox-xref dbox-roman" href="http://www.dictionary.com/browse/history" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #307dbc; display: inline; text-decoration-line: none;">history</a> or legend.</div>
</div>
<div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<span class="def-number" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; float: left; padding-right: 5px;">12.</span><br />
<div class="def-content" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-left: 37px;">
<span class="dbox-italic" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-style: italic;">Obsolete. </span>to tell the <a class="dbox-xref dbox-roman" href="http://www.dictionary.com/browse/history" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #307dbc; display: inline; text-decoration-line: none;">history</a> or story of.</div>
</div>
</section><section class="def-pbk ce-spot" data-collapse-expand="{"target": ".def-set", "type": "def"}" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<br />
<section class="def-pbk ce-spot" data-collapse-expand="{"target": ".def-set", "type": "def"}" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif;">
</section></div>
</section><section class="def-pbk ce-spot" data-collapse-expand="{"target": ".def-set", "type": "def"}" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="def-set" style="box-sizing: border-box; padding-bottom: 17px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And so I knew in my heart that when I unveiled my new space, I would be unveiling a new name as well: Story Central. </span></div>
</section></div>
</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><i>Story: "A narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader; tale" </i>or<i> "A narration of the events in the life of a person...the story of his life."</i> </span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Yes, yes, one million yeses! </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">That is what I want to be about - narrating the story of my life, and the life of my family. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Thank you for hanging with me during the transition, during all the dusty, neglected days on this blog. It's definitely now time to turn a page and begin a new chapter in my book. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> And so I unveil to you Story Central, my beautiful, custom, delightful spot from which I pray I will sit and share with you many more days of my crafting the good story I love. She is simply amazing.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Story Central ~ Documenting the Design ~ April 2017</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Title Font: Watermelon Script</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-39621566922187700922017-06-06T19:44:00.000-05:002017-06-06T19:46:01.880-05:00There's No Place Like Home<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I unpacked the very last box on Sunday, and as of that day, we'd been in the house six days short of the seven month mark. I never expected it to take me that long to unpack, but there isn't anyone my age that doesn't expect life to throw you some curve balls, and to take them in stride is the best management plan. As I unpacked the box, I was acutely mindful of its contents: Demdaco angels that go on display in my scrapbook room. We knew when we moved in that there was no point in unpacking them, as we were going to have custom cabinets built. So when we came across that box, it and the box holding my crosses were set to the side "for later".</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">As I unpacked the angels and set them out on the kitchen island, I thought about the years of gifting they spanned. I think the earliest date that I saw inked onto the bottom of one was "May '01"...that would have been the first Mother's Day that we lived in McAllen, Texas. Steve would always take the boys to Quips and Quotes on North 10th Street to let them pick one or two out for me for Mother's Day, or Valentine's Day, or my birthday. And as I looked at all of them {I have 32}, I recalled little blonde-headed boys curling up on my lap, or, later, peering at me through awkward adolescent eyes, as we would sit around our dining room table over our family meal. And when I went to place them on the shelves in my now finished custom cabinets, I did not fret over running out of room. My collection fit perfectly, almost too perfectly, as if planned. But as it happens, it was just a serendipitous, organic moment of perfection. The angels fit perfectly, and I knew I need not worry about the collection growing any, or running out of room. Those little blonde-headed boys have of course grown up and gone away, and Mother's Day came and went this year without anything other than a phone call from New York, and a hug from my son who was with us in Florida.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Life goes on. Our whole exercise in downsizing, or right-sizing, and moving was in fact a testament to that, a full expectation that it would be just the two of us again. Steve and I have embraced the spectacularly mild May and June weather we have been having in north Texas, and he and I have sat out on either our new side patio or our front porch in the evenings as much as possible. As we sat on the side patio Thursday night, I asked him, now that we are basically completely settled in the house, and accustomed to most things around us and our new life, if he was content, or happy, with the choice we made to move. See, we are at the two year anniversary of "THE GREAT RIGHT-SIZING DECISION". ;-) You don't have to peer too far back on my cob-webbed and abandoned blog to see that this whole change began with a conversation on our Murphy front porch on Saturday, June 6, 2015, two years ago from today, the day I am "penning" this post. And as Steve and I talked Thursday night, we both came to the individual and mutual decision that it was the right decision, and we are far happier where we are now. Granted, it's been a long two years, full of lots of temporary situations, hard work, stress, and chaos, but unpacking that last box on Sunday signaled the virtual, and very real, end of it all. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I've stopped binge watching HGTV. I started reading an actual fiction book Sunday night. The stress is off my shoulders. My level of internal joy is increasing and bubbling up inside me. I smile more. I hope more. I look toward the end of the day, the ensuing days, with possibility and positivity. I have resumed my walking at lunch. My Pottery Barn wish list has dwindled down to only some new bedding, {whenever they finally roll out something I like}. Steve and I have resumed our running. Sometimes I just sit down on the sofa and watch a show or take a nap -- because I can. {In fact, one night not too long ago, I sat on the sofa all night long and just watched TV for 3 hours. Unheard of!} He unloaded the box of a puzzle the other night to piece together. We've chatted with our neighbors. We've invited two couples over for dinner this coming weekend {our inaugural hospitality launch}. We've had our first full week vacation away from our new home. {I missed my home!} We've started our builders' warranty work list. And goodness, it's almost unfathomable to comprehend that we have almost been in the house for seven months, but it's true. I've been working on settling in almost non-stop that entire time, and my body can tell you it's true. ;-) Time does fly. All these days here have been full, busy, productive, and they have flown by.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And in addition to settling down in the house, I'm settling down now in the scrapbook room. March, April, and May have been a crafty flurry of chaos, mayhem, and organizational rabbit holes. I've lived my life for so many months with a DAILY TO DO LIST, and my lists, for the house and the craft room, are nearing their collective ends. I don't know what I'll do with myself! Wait, yes, I do! I ordered some paper today for a specific set of photos, and I am itching to get to scrapping them! But not just yet, as this week I am seriously focusing on wrapping up the last of the moving in of my scrapbook room. I am down to the final items on my list, and that will mean I can finally live the life I designed! ;-) </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am, admittedly {and surprisingly to me} suffering a little anxiety at finally being finished with everything, and I am internally adapting to no longer needing to search for ideas, research choices, make decisions, shop for things...but at the same time, I am very eager to re-define and re-shape a new normal! I guess after nearly two years of designing and deciding, it's normal that it has consumed me, and it's normal that it's ending, and it's normal, I hope!, to need to adapt to the change. I have scrapped some basic layouts in my new space during April and May, and I have to say the "test runs", or "soft opening", of the new room's custom configuration have gone very well and leave me longing, finally, to once again and un-abandonedly scrap! I am about to be once again where desire and feasibility collide, and yet in a new way, as I've never before experienced a personal, customized space!</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">So the last box is unpacked, and the last stack of things to put away sits on my built-in desk, and all the collective lists are nearly done. It finally, finally is about over. The dream we launched 24 months ago, the dream we agonized over for 16 months in an apartment, the dream we have been working on in the house for the last nearly seven months - the dream has now come true! I'm really, really about to live the life I designed. And the house, somewhat like the angels fitting on their shelves, fits us perfectly right now. It's been a serendipitous, organic process, and it feels like perfection. It feels like home. Home Sweet Home. There's just no place like it. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "times new roman";"></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Home Sweet Home ~ Our New Home ~ November 2016</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Lily Bee, Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Title: Silhouette File</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-64889391243689609462017-01-19T15:42:00.002-06:002017-06-21T10:27:54.084-05:00You Do Not Find the Happy Life, You Make It<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I used that Thomas Monson quote on my February 25, 2016 blog post, and didn't realize at the time that I would blow up my plans 3 days later and start from scratch. I didn't realize or have any way of knowing just how busy I would be in 2016 making, or constructing and building, that happy life.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Today we hit the 10 week mark of being in our new home! Most days I pinch myself, just to see if it's real. I am thrilled with how it turned out, satisfied with the unpacking pace, and eager to embrace 2017 and find our new normal life again. I got my car into the garage on Sunday, so that truly means we are in and just about all done unpacking, right? ;-) </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This time last year, we stood on a slab in full despair of ever seeing "our dream house" begin. Who knew this time last year that we would turn our world upside down by canceling that contract on February 28, 2016, extend the agony of building, and that I would post quarterly on this blog, vs. my ideal (dream) goal of weekly? Like I have said many times since February 2016, sometimes God shatters your dream to give birth to a bigger and better dream. Yes, yes He does.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I haven't photographed our new home much yet, because we still haven't got everything on the walls, and there's one more piece of furniture I want to reupholster, and there's a box in our bedroom, and the study lacks its built-in cabinets, and the list goes on and on. ;-) But, the holidays are behind me, my oldest son came and went in a Thanksgiving and Christmas swirl, and is now back in Nashville in his last semester of college, the Christmas rush is through and the decorations are put away, the unpacking frenzy is for all intents and purposes finished, and I can sit at my worktable in Scrap Central and breathe. And think. And ponder. And itch to create. And print photos. And cut paper. It feels so good to have a spot again, albeit an unfinished spot. And I am excited for all of the story telling I can accomplish in 2017. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">But before I head fully into a new year in our new home, I wanted to share with you all my layouts I created in June and July of 2016 that documented our old home. I only completed 99 layouts in 2016, the lowest amount of scrapbook pages I've ever done since beginning to scrapbook in 1994. Out of those 99, these are my favorites by far. These photos, these memories, these layouts were so instrumental in helping me hold together my sanity in the dog days of summer 2016 in the hot, cramped, dark apartment. And they pay homage to our beautiful old home, they document her splendor, they let me say goodbye properly to her, and ultimately they open the door for me to fully embrace our new home, and all the story telling it will cultivate, and all the memories it will create. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Yes, you do not find the happy life, you make it. One day at a time, one story at a time, one decision at a time, one moment at a time. And once you make it, hang on to it, and embrace it. Hello beautiful new home, hello crisp new year, goodbye old home, goodbye 2016.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">There's No Place Like Home ~ June 2015 ~ Remembering Murphy Manor</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: October Afternoon, Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Title Fonts: Ballerina Script</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-52396168738130402022016-09-22T05:50:00.001-05:002017-06-21T10:04:08.550-05:00I've Been Busy Chasing Dreams<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The good news is that I could remember my default settings here for type size, font, and color on my posts. The bad news is that I haven't blogged in so long that the cobwebs and dust here are incredibly dense, and I should have my keyboard rights revoked. Sincerely, since last I saw you.... Truly, though, I feel like I'm a sporadic episode of a bad soap opera from which you just cannot look away.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So at any rate, happy end of summer. Today is officially the first day of fall. It's still hot in Texas. 95 right now as I type this. Teachers everywhere are scurrying to get classroom routines down pat, and parents everywhere are dealing with the reality that school has started, and with it all the ensuing schedule demands. Some are doing the happy dance, some are obsessing about finding the exact class, club or sport supply requirement that everyone wants and no one stocks, and some of melancholy over the house being quiet again. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Yes, September. It's here. And halfway over. My youngest son is 21 now, and still working hard to build his culinary resume, and finalizing his application to the CIA. He did take a big adventure trip to Peru for 9 days after his August birthday. Football has resumed and the Steelers are 2-0. He's excited. Oldest boy is hunkering down and getting his routine settled as he has entered his last year of college. {Where has the time gone?} Thankfully, he wisely decided this week not to get a dog. Hubster is knee deep in another holiday season prep fest at work. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">See, I seriously feel like we need a "when last we left her" recap. And you should totally read that in your mind in a 1930's creepy, sinister radio narrator voice. :-) So, I shall catch you up to speed, and once again hope that I can keep it together enough to be a little more intentional and frequent out here in the blogosphere. I have always felt that writing comes out of a place of abundance within me, and when I'm not living in an "overflow" mentality, it's hard. But, the exciting thing is that I feel that spirit of abundance returning. Life must be leveling out some.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, stating the obvious, my last post was, <i>serendipitously</i>, on Friday, February 26. On that next day, Saturday, Steve was off, and we both got up early and drove down to Houston for the day for my second installment of spending a Saturday visiting my parents. {You might also recall we were in month 8 of building a home: contract signed for new home on 6/13/2015, moved out of old home into an apartment on 7/28/2015. Slab on new home wasn't poured until 12/30/15.} Steve and I had a great visit with my folks and got in late Saturday night, February 27. We woke up on Sunday morning, now February 28, folks, and went to check on the progress of our home build, as our project manager had let us know via a Friday email that they "fixed all the items on our list" regarding framing, electrical, and plumbing issues we had noted and had been working with them on for weeks upon weeks. We walked in the house and disgustedly observed they had fixed ONLY ONE of the items. I slowly turned to Steve and said, with all the subtle coyness I could muster, "I found the new David Weekley neighborhood on Friday afternoon. Do you want to go see it?" To his credit, and my complete satisfaction, he didn't bat an eye, or pause a second before determinedly replying, "YES." Now my husband does not get upset very often, but on that day he was incredibly agitated "for him". ;-) {I am all the volume in our marriage.} ;-) </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">{Now, the narrator needs to pipe back in and let you know that the heroine of this tale had secretly reconnoitered on Friday afternoon the 26th to find the new David Weekley neighborhood that was supposedly going in near or around the neighborhood she was presently building in. The heroine had also reached out to this same company back in June 2015, and was not answered, and reached out again to them in January 2016, and got the information that it would take 6-8 months to build, and yes, they were patio homes with zero lot lines. The final fact I'll share is that the heroine's last house in Murphy was built by David Weekley and David Weekley originates in Houston, where said heroine had nursed a three decade crush on his homes before being able to build one herself in 2005.}</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, we walked out of that framed shell of a house and drove the 1.8 mile distance in 4 minutes, parked the car, and got out to walk the model. Now, the model was not yet finished, and the neighborhood was not yet finished, but pre-sale was occurring and the sales team was set up in a nearby office space, but on that Sunday, it was just Steve, myself, and survey marked lots full of dirt, and quasi-constructed homes present in the neighborhood. The model itself was dried in, framed and insulated - ready for drywall. Farther along than the home we bought back in June. It was also markedly superior in workmanship and lumber quality. I am so thankful that the two homes were at virtually the same stage, insulation being only the different item in one over the other. I do believe that was <i>a sovereign moment</i> for Steve to so transparently be able to instantly contrast and compare. {I had walked the model home under construction on Friday afternoon and was already 36 hours in love with the concept, neighborhood, and area.} He immediately blurted out, "This home looks WAY BETTER than my home! Look at this lumber! I can see there is a huge difference in how ours is being built! Our home looks like crap!" I can still hear him being so vocal, so emphatic, so disgusted. My inner self was dancing. I had been ready to walk away from the other one since November. We had 15,000 reasons not to. As in dollars paid down as deposits on upgrades, technically non-refundable. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, I looked at Steve and said, "Time and money aside, is there any reason we should buy that other house and not buy a home here in this neighborhood? Setting aside the delay in move in, and setting aside the risk of losing $15,000, is there any reason we should buy that house?" He said, "No." And then I said, "Then there is <i>no reason</i> why we <i>should</i> buy that house. Because $15,000 and 6 months are not enough of a reason to be miserable for the next fifteen years." {I think that might have been my most logical, sane, and rational rebuttal I've ever given in my life.} ;-) He agreed. I then called the internet sales number and set up an appointment for 1:00 p.m. that very same day with the Spicewood Sales Consultant. It really just all snowballed from there. We knew we were after something very similar to what we were building around the corner. We were handed the 8 floor plans, and quickly tossed any that had an upstairs study, or no study, or 4 bedrooms. That left 2 viable options, and we both loved the one that had the largest study, The Roseman. Now, I cannot tell you if that is why Steve loved it, but I know that is what I evaluate first and foremost! It is kind of funny, though, that he and I were both able to decide in about 15 minutes which one we liked, and we both picked the same one. We have bought too many houses, for sure.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We picked the plan, looked at the neighborhood plots available, talked through the pros and cons of them, drove over to neighborhood and walked some lots with the Sales Consultant, and then headed back to her office. I asked Steve the second "tough love" question of the day, "What questions do you need answered to make a decision?" {My heart needed to regroup and move forward!!} He said, "None." to which I quickly replied, "Do you have your checkbook, or do you need mine?" Good lordy I love that man. He whipped out his checkbook right then and paid the deposit. I'm sure that Sales gal will tell the tale of us for years to come. We might have been the fastest sale ever on a home that had a model home that wasn't even finished yet, let alone the neighborhood not even being finished. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Opportunity is what happens when luck and preparation collide. We got lucky that day. We acted on a hunch and scored an amazing lot that had zero premium, and were the second sale in the neighborhood. You can't ever tell me that internet researching on a slow Friday afternoon at work doesn't pay off! We then spiraled into the circuit of cancelling the other contract and going full bore into the beginning processes of an entirely new new home build. We called it the new new house and the old new house. Everything about the new new house confirmed for us that it was meant to be. I told Steve on 2/29, the day we cancelled our contract on the old new house, "Sometimes God lets a dream die to give birth to a new bigger and better dream." I sent him an email that day called, "What a difference a day makes" because the new team was all over us with information, mapping out what needed to happen next, finalizing our paperwork, etc. It was stunning to watch it all unfold! And after a long week of intermittent communiques with the old new house, we found out on Friday, March 4 at 5:00 p.m., as we wrapped up a meeting with our new new house team, that we were getting a full refund on the old new house. Talk about a gift from heaven! It was sweet closure to a long and arduous ordeal. We got that check in the mail two weeks later and never corresponded with them again. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">{We did continue to check on the old new house about every 4 weeks or so. They listed it for $35,000 more than our contract price on it, and it sold in about a month of our cancellation. The buyers moved in around July 21, best I could tell based on some curtains on the window. I will tell you if I had waited 13 months for that house I think I would either be incarcerated or in an asylum. And the last time we walked the house, right before the appliances were installed, we could still see mistakes in it and shoddy workmanship, and we were so glad we bailed when we did. My mom has said to me many times over that house, "You never would have been happy in that house," and I believe she is spot on.}</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We moved full speed ahead on the new new house, and never looked back or second guessed. Of course, we went through Design again, and selected, and in some cases re-selected, choices. I am getting the same floor in the new new house, and going with the same color scheme, but the new new house had more options available, and like any good dessert buffet, I helped myself to more than I needed, and maybe more than I should've. ;-) We worked on the design elements and making all of our decisions and selections while the developer worked on finishing up "Phase 2" of the neighborhood, the phase that we will be in. We had our final design appointment on April 19, the neighborhood received city of McKinney sign off on May 17, and our permit was approved on or around June 3. The lot was plowed on June 10. Our new new house was further along after 7 weeks than the old new home was after 7 months. It's all been a whirlwind ride. A very fast, emotional, chaotic, happy dance ride.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We are hanging in there. The apartment is old. We are weary of it. Poor Truman doesn't know what to think. The one year mark in late July of being out of our old home hit me hard. The month of June when we thought we were to have been in our old new home was a challenge. The extended lease expiration date and paying high month to month rent is icky. There have been some dark days, some weepy weekends, some endless evenings. But, we are in the home stretch. The tile crew is installing the kitchen backsplash soon. The countertops are in. The plumbers started installing fixtures yesterday and should finish up today. The electrician shows up today to begin installation of outlets, switches, and light fixtures. HVAC also begins today.</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> My best guess is that there are between 50 and 60 days left of apartment life. {Believe me I have a complex algorithm set up to calculate this that I review and update daily. You don't want to see that deep into my head, trust me.} ;-) </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And 9 of those 60 days we are, thank the Lord, in Florida.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Walt Disney himself said, "All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them." </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, that is why I haven't been here. I've been busy chasing dreams. And actually watching a few of them be captured, followed, come to life.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Follow Your Dreams ~ Buying The Roseman ~ March 2016</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Title Fonts: Silhouette Cut File</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Settling on Spicewood ~ Starting the Cottage ~ March 2016</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paper: October Afternoon, Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Title Fonts: Ballerina Script</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-18731649683859320262016-02-26T14:00:00.002-06:002016-02-26T14:00:36.636-06:00Perfect Collection + Super Savers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">One of the story prompts from the Lisa Bearnson <i>50 Moments</i> book that I mentioned in my last post is about "the last time you learned anything." When Maria posted that prompt to work from, I'll be honest and confess that it didn't really speak to me, and I passed for now on making a layout from that prompt. For one, I'm in some ways constantly learning something, and in other ways it feels like I'm not really discovering anything new. Know what I mean? For instance, I'm constantly struggling to stay abreast of technology, and Google something almost every day, but I don't feel that a new idea has sparked my brain for awhile. Especially in scrapbooking! I mean, I've been scrapping for 21 1/2 years! </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And then last night I was looking through some layouts I need to put away, and I realized that the concept that I used to make these layouts was new to me, and I did learn something, and I stretched myself in a new way. Grab a cup of coffee and let me show you.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Now, since we are coffee sipping, soul sharing, scrapbook loving sisters, I need to tell you a secret. But you have to promise not to tell, and you have to promise to still be my friend after I tell you. ;-) There is a certain prolific and well known scrapper that many, many people love, and she is so popular the she is also a super hero kind of scrapper and she's so famous that she's also been in the Olympic opening ceremonies. She's cute as a button, and she does wonderful work, but it's just not work to my taste, and I've just never jumped on the fan bandwagon. I'll peek at her stuff every now and again, but I'm not big on glitter after all, and so there. I'll say it. I'm not atwitter over Miss Glitter.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">But, you're never too old to learn, yes? So many of my scrappy peeps have taken and loved Shimelle Lane's <a href="http://www.shimelle.com/paper/1506/true-scrap-3-now-available-as-individual-classes/" target="_blank">Perfect Collection</a> class. I've watched them post their results, and I've oohed and aahed over their beautiful pages, but I never had an interest in the concept, or in taking the actual class. I studied their finished pages, and even the corresponding <a href="http://www.shimelle.com/paper/1420/the-perfect-collection/" target="_blank">Perfect Collection cutting guide</a>, but I just would not tiptoe in to the murky waters. {It's all the layering of the paper, and the fact that they are all predominantly single page layouts that holds me back, personally. Again, lovely work. Just not my style, per se.} From what I gather, having not purchased Shimelle's class, the premise behind the class, if I may, is that you take an entire collection pack of patterned paper, and {brace yourself for the horror}, you cut the whole thing up according to her cutting guide that you can download, irrespective of {and in advance of making} any planned layouts. And then you have all these piles of cut up patterned paper that you begin to cobble together to fashion into layouts.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Whew. That's so much to process! Typing it up is just as hard as my imagining doing it! ;-) Well, after watching my scrappy peeps go through this class together a couple of times, I was more intrigued, but still unconvinced. Until Heather shared her adaptation of Shimelle's concept. Heather makes "base pages". She, rather than cutting up the paper without a plan, cut into the pack with a purpose. She cut up the whole collection, layout by layout. And she shared her amazing "base pages". And my wheels really started churning!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And so I took Heather's idea - <i>and here's my 50 Moments what I learned lightbulb </i>- I could make this concept all my own! I could take a whole collection, and marry it with my wheelhouse, my go-to style: I could use some <a href="http://www.scrapbookgeneration.com/sketch-books/" target="_blank">sketches by Scrapbook Generation</a>! I could cut up the paper according to some selected sketches and, like Heather, map out my layouts as I went along, versus just random cutting. Now, I was interested, and intrigued, and excited! My first introduction to Scrapbook Generation sketches was back in January 2010 when I purchased two of their books. Shortly after that, I subscribed to their Super Sketch Club, and it's been a long lasting love affair ever since. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">As I puzzled with the concept of how to cut apart an entire collection, and how to marry it with some SG sketches, I had the idea to go to previous months' Super Sketch Club sketches. {Always keep those sketches!} Now, if you are not familiar with the <a href="http://www.scrapbookgeneration.com/sg-exclusives/monthly-kit-clubs/" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation Super Sketch Club</a>, it is a monthly subscription to a brilliant cellophane bag of paper and sketches - patterned paper and cardstock to make 5 double page layouts, based on the included 7 sketches. The Super Sketch Club has each month a Super Saver component, and then two other double layouts, one designed by Debbie and one designed by Allison. You get a sampling of three lines of paper between it all, and the supplies to churn out 10 completed pages when using their sketch instructions. The true genius in the Super Saver kit component is that you will get THREE double layouts from THREE sheets of paper, hence the super saver name. ;-) </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">So, for years I've had exposure to and experience with cutting up 3 pieces of paper at a time and cobbling it into layouts. For the record, when I do cut up my Super Saver kits, I always lay the cardstock out as a base, and as I follow the directions for Layout 1, Layout 2, and Layout 3, I set the corresponding cut papers onto the cardstock base that will become that layout. So, what's not to love about multiplication?! I could take this method for cutting 3 sheets of paper and cut up 12! Yes? Yes! So, I thought I would share how I did this and perhaps pay it forward on the inspiration. As Ginny and Janet and Heather inspired me, maybe I could inspire you. Maybe something I share, or something I did, will get you ready to try this. I loved it so much that I am already dying to do it again.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Step One: Pick your paper. I went with the topic of Christmas because first of all, I have a million Christmas photos that need to be scrapped, and second, I have almost that many pieces of Christmas patterned paper. I felt the risk level was low here, since I wouldn't be cutting into anything rare, and I felt like the opportunity for success was high, since I had a broad myriad of Christmas photos to pick from. Also, I felt like since there are so many Christmas ideas and embellishments available, I would have on hand the tools needed to make any layout look polished and finished by the end.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I chose Authentique's Believe. I just adore this paper. Adore.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Step Two: Pick your plan. Use Shimelle's cutting guide if that is your style, or pick some sketches you can work from, or if you are a Super Saver subscriber, dust off those old sketches and find some that will work. Personally, I studied all the photos from the Super Saver photo downloads, and found three months that I thought offered layout styles that would work for Christmas: January 2015, February 2015, and November 2015. I picked 8 of the 9 layouts from these 3 months to complete. I knew I would also complete one single page layout with the "big background" paper in the collection.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">After I had my sketches selected, I then assigned certain sheets of the Authentique Believe papers to become the papers on the sketches, three sheets of paper per sketch set. I didn't study too long, but I did assign my "stripe" to be the plaid and then I looked for opposite colorings, for instance going red and green, vs. red and red. For most of the assigning and cutting phase, I had cardstock spread all over the apartment to "catch" the paper that was assigned to that layout. If you make some notes on your sketches, and go slowly, this part is not too confusing.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">My friend Ginny suggested a great place to start cutting, when you are overwhelmed, or not sure where to begin, is to remove the branding strips from the paper. Brilliant! An easy start. And how fun is it to see all those branding strips relegated to a discard pile. Instant progress!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">These are the sheets of paper that I pulled that did not get assigned to a sketch, but were set to the side to use later in the finishing phases:</span><br />
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The big background paper for a single page layout.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The red circle paper that I knew I would circle punch for a border across the bottom half of one of the double page layouts.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The tan Christmas trees for filler and balance as needed.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The cut aparts. I cut them all apart and had them on hand to pull in as needed. I'm not big on these being my only title, so I didn't end up using too many of them. The backside was a boring blue, so I didn't plan to use it anyway.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The sticker sheet that came with the collection. I knew this would come in handy later!</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The scraps left over after I cut. I knew these would become some strips here and there on the other layouts. (Also see close up shot in the second photo.)</span></li>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Step Three: Begin cutting! </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">As I mentioned, given Heather's concept, I cut with a purpose. I cut each Super Saver set together, and cut per each sketch's instructions. I set each paper on top of the cardstock so I could really see my layouts coming together. I had also printed out letter size black and white copies of the Super Saver photos, and I set that down on the cardstock, too, to help me visualize the end result - and to keep me on track! {I have blurred the details of the Super Saver photos out of respect to Scrapbook Generation and their copyrights.} It didn't take long for me to SEE that this idea would work and the time spent "apportioning", or delegating, papers to sketches was time well spent for me!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Step Four: Adhere your paper, and paper only! This is where you will tape down all of your papers, creating the "canvas" of your layout upon which you will drop your photos. Remember, at this point, you haven't even selected or touched photos! This process is all layout/paper driven! This step went fairly fast. And used a lot of ATG tape. ;-) You could definitely now see the bones of the layouts and the hard part at this point is over!!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Step Five: Add photos. Not much explanation needed here. I personally had the photo suggestions from the Super Saver sketches that I used, and I tweaked them slightly as needed to get my photos to match up with the sketch's foundation. This is a really fun phase, because you can really finally see the full vision for your layouts! And what a lovely stack it will be! {Some of these photos might be slightly askew. Apartment winter photographing is a little challenging.}</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Step Six: Embellish and journal! This is the very fun part and this is where you might stall! Don't! Finish strong! A big pile of goodness waits for you! I love, love, love how they all turned out. They stretched me from beginning to end in the process, but it was a wonderful learning experience!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">~ Christmas Pajamas ~</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">~ 'Tis the Season to be Jolly ~</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">~ White Christmas ~</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VQWyt-RnjQgH-5c3xs90uiCj_eyhwE9x7Z2pSsJ4cnurjRWIVtNzUKaB7ukBaBRpprNBaWvFsn8MeSScnQCnnLm4i23faW_8VjMlM9uLLHtiYfBzHCSL52SWgEtpoHzchp5gtwCTIrnK/s1600/IMG_4731.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VQWyt-RnjQgH-5c3xs90uiCj_eyhwE9x7Z2pSsJ4cnurjRWIVtNzUKaB7ukBaBRpprNBaWvFsn8MeSScnQCnnLm4i23faW_8VjMlM9uLLHtiYfBzHCSL52SWgEtpoHzchp5gtwCTIrnK/s640/IMG_4731.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">~ Joy and Family ~</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE7fcZ845g1MMmk-VODfLpzpGuPN1kUCDK_ZMjEGooApppWkB1n8LP1Ys2ZlTDvZd49eipSJTCO0omFaVPU9HyywKZ5pvme5FrWlQm8lJRmjy7Ux87NMQ7JHF5w0iOchGS8nKg2iR-Mcj1/s1600/IMG_4723.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE7fcZ845g1MMmk-VODfLpzpGuPN1kUCDK_ZMjEGooApppWkB1n8LP1Ys2ZlTDvZd49eipSJTCO0omFaVPU9HyywKZ5pvme5FrWlQm8lJRmjy7Ux87NMQ7JHF5w0iOchGS8nKg2iR-Mcj1/s640/IMG_4723.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> ~ Home for the Holidays ~</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrufXGSU8nU0vWih-StduIbp7p80XU12EcRWwkeS_XvWYIlY8Nd6WwZKfIfoV04noqyYAepUuddADacUTpSuSMaHyTCHq3vBfQsKzmNuDQ5nQ5M_whCwNmwHy83IDDvtJOohcemLiVtZn9/s1600/IMG_4720.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrufXGSU8nU0vWih-StduIbp7p80XU12EcRWwkeS_XvWYIlY8Nd6WwZKfIfoV04noqyYAepUuddADacUTpSuSMaHyTCHq3vBfQsKzmNuDQ5nQ5M_whCwNmwHy83IDDvtJOohcemLiVtZn9/s640/IMG_4720.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> ~ The Best Holiday Presents are the Memories ~</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7VHI9ol-aGM_ymNLQ63_CYDQPw1J_Iomio0Eb1gYTd6oCkerg15h9GeuUclbyDqPGDRb-UIKgmmSh_xayaUs1eF6V_NEknKFb-NluKTZOSiUMpUZt6JRADVJsP2UlyaQ8XGAuzP12eCCz/s1600/IMG_4730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7VHI9ol-aGM_ymNLQ63_CYDQPw1J_Iomio0Eb1gYTd6oCkerg15h9GeuUclbyDqPGDRb-UIKgmmSh_xayaUs1eF6V_NEknKFb-NluKTZOSiUMpUZt6JRADVJsP2UlyaQ8XGAuzP12eCCz/s640/IMG_4730.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">~ Christmas Cheer ~</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKw8TdE2J3zKyzVMHYtfPpRDjt00p2mgifiiY1u3BpWmr4Jqm0vy4QbAFk1NIF8XWzTCOF6LoFydfl5pV2gwhCorlACqli1XgjXBmS0Oq7LHL8s9w_cdDfWqESbK9-shENJ7WJi2T1tz6/s1600/IMG_4735.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKw8TdE2J3zKyzVMHYtfPpRDjt00p2mgifiiY1u3BpWmr4Jqm0vy4QbAFk1NIF8XWzTCOF6LoFydfl5pV2gwhCorlACqli1XgjXBmS0Oq7LHL8s9w_cdDfWqESbK9-shENJ7WJi2T1tz6/s640/IMG_4735.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">~ A Merry Little Christmas ~</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">{this layout was not get photographed in it's pre-photo phase}</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEx7erfAbEnNdklfYUGCxhbu8rwxBEwXFFeHk_yvUP_4uxFL5geZXYdtKOpeiXGCGot8kiSsoSnw7t-rmAJBCseKmCPrU7VXD5bK8u5ApPhC9W_Wr6POWEhg6yywLexvpC4Dgv5_os_-dK/s1600/IMG_3136.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEx7erfAbEnNdklfYUGCxhbu8rwxBEwXFFeHk_yvUP_4uxFL5geZXYdtKOpeiXGCGot8kiSsoSnw7t-rmAJBCseKmCPrU7VXD5bK8u5ApPhC9W_Wr6POWEhg6yywLexvpC4Dgv5_os_-dK/s640/IMG_3136.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">~ Oh Christmas Tree ~</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIM3zZCKU8OrGjicGqi_wdQCv8cSg2Ml4edNYCqK0gh60sUAx-Xur3s6VPjNqwLBZW1a2sQYVFwNBjnPOwJcEK8m1J8xlIumK1TTmmEwjtznIDdA1n0Ep21wVtzkuwVNDJjsvSKDdfCIRP/s1600/IMG_4717.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIM3zZCKU8OrGjicGqi_wdQCv8cSg2Ml4edNYCqK0gh60sUAx-Xur3s6VPjNqwLBZW1a2sQYVFwNBjnPOwJcEK8m1J8xlIumK1TTmmEwjtznIDdA1n0Ep21wVtzkuwVNDJjsvSKDdfCIRP/s400/IMG_4717.jpg" width="396" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And just because you might be wondering, here is what was left over after it was all said and done. I started with 12 sheets of patterned paper, added in some Bazzill French Vanilla and Cardinal cardstock, added in 1 piece of the coordinating 6x6 paper pad, and then ended up with 17 completed pages, and this small pile of scraps, which is mostly extra cut aparts from the journaling card sheet of paper.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">What I learned:</span><br />
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Pick paper you love. You <i>will</i> get tired of it. But you <i>can</i> fall back in love with it when you are finished.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Pick paper you have plenty of. You won't want to worry about cutting mistakes and not having enough to go the distance.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Pick paper that complements some other paper you have, in case you get stuck, want a little extra flair, or need some extra element. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Don't be afraid of the big background pattern if your selected collection includes one.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Set aside one or two sheets that you can fussy cut or punch for some coordinating pops of color.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Working with one theme is simplistic and wonderful, because your same embellishments will work on all of the pages and you pull them out in one big batch.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Vary your sketches to get horizontal and vertical photos. I felt like I did too many horizontal-only sketches when I was trying to pull photos to match the sketches.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Commit to finishing. There were stages along the way where I hated how it was looking. But, it all worked out and I love where each layout ended. {There are still a couple I'd like to tweak and may yet add something.}</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Cut your titles in batches to save time. Vary how they look.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Work across a span of years if you don't want an overflow of one single set of Christmas papers representing one year.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Give yourself a deadline. You WILL get tired of all this stuff being out everywhere.</span></li>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I'd have to say, when it's all said and done, it is a perfect idea, and a super set of layouts. Where this all gets interesting is that I began my initial set of cuts on the Sunday of MLK weekend, I believe: January 17. And I finished the last step on the last layout on February 11. 17 pages in 26 days. {I did also work on other things in between.} The photo at the top of this post is my Expedit. As I finished a layout, I'd set it up there. Watching those cubes fill up was fun and it was wonderful to see the big picture of the completed process! I can't wait to try it again. I'm deliberating on another round of Christmas, or trying Fall or tackling Birthdays.</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-22437183551490739872016-02-25T06:20:00.005-06:002016-02-25T20:35:32.142-06:00Headed to Happy<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">There is a guy at work that I sometimes see at the coffee
bar. I give him the normal casual “Hello” or “How are you?” when our paths
collide. The thing that I notice about him is that he always answers the second
greeting the same way – “GREAT!” and honestly it sort of gets on my nerves. How
can he be GREAT every day? I asked him once when he answered, “How is it that
you always answer <i>great</i>?” to which he
replied, “Because I am great every day, aren’t you?” I looked at him out of the
corner of my eye, slowly turned my head, and replied, “No. I’m not always
great. Some days I’m just good.” I think a lot about him when I am mulling over
my days, taking the pulse on the good life, thinking about the day to day
workaday world we live in. I guess I tend toward realism and pragmatism far too
much. But, I’m okay with that. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I don’t mean to sound negative, or depressed, or down. I’m
not really currently considering myself any of those. It’s just that I don’t
think I’ll ever achieve “GREAT!” at the coffee bar at work! ;-) I will admit I
have been thinking a lot lately about it all. I’ll also admit one year ago, you
could not have made me believe that we would be living in an apartment right
now, having sold our beautiful David Weekley home in Murphy, and that we would still be three or
four months away from being back in a house of our own. I like to think most
days that we are making the right move. Some days it is easier to believe that
than others.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">For all practical purposes, we are in a tough spot right
now, or should I say an uncomfortable spot. {I know this isn't tough. It's just the brat in me getting weary.} The house was initially supposed to be finished “January or February” and
folks, let’s face it. There are just a handful of days left in February, and
today our house does not even have brick on the exterior, or drywall on the
studs. It’s just a shell of what is to come – a glimpse of what it will be. And
sometimes to see my dream, I have to squint just so, dig deep into my mind, and conjure up my
Pinterest boards to even have a vision of what will be the final product. We
aren’t getting into the house anytime soon, and we are sentenced to more days
in the apartment. It’s frustrating. It’s isolating. It’s stressful. It’s
annoying. It’s an inconvenience. It’s costing us money. It’s preventing us from
having any company. It’s freaking out my dog. The end result – our dream –
seems so far away. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">We had a chance to FaceTime with Philip last night. About
halfway through he said, “Y’all are just <i>SO
DOWN</i>.” {Yes, yes we are. Right now we are.} It was really an adjustment for
him, I think, to see us so down. See, not only is the building going slow, but
there are mistakes. Yesterday we were to finally have a meeting with the
General Manager, in the hopes of resolution and forward progress, and she came
down with bronchitis and had to postpone the meeting. I had carried with me for
a few days such high hopes of finally getting some things resolved and having the
opportunity to keep the house progressing. When the meeting fell through, I
just didn’t have anything left in me to summon up good, much less “GREAT!” I
felt a little bad for our son, but at the same time I thought, “It’s okay for
him to know that <i>the struggle is real</i>
sometimes for all of us.” And I won’t apologize for being human and working my
way through an ordeal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">But, I know I need to suck it up a little and keep my chin
up. We have too many days left in the apartment to be so down every day. {I
think we have more than 90 days left, but less than 120. I should stop
counting.} I was reminded yesterday of this layout I completed a few weeks
back. Sometimes our scrapping can be oh, so timely. Awhile back my friend Janet had
shared <i>50 Moments - Scrapbook The Pages That Matter Most</i>, a book by Lisa Bearnson. I was intrigued and promptly bought the book, with wonderful intentions. The boys graduating high school and my nest emptying pushed that book onto a shelf and the project to the back burner. I just didn’t get around to working
on any of the story prompts until another friend Maria initiated a group
challenge with my Peeps during 2016. Maria’s first prompt that she selected, serendipitously,
was HAPPY. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Oh, goodness. It immediately brought to mind a road trip from
McAllen to Colorado that I took in 2002. On that trip, I drove through a town
in Texas named Happy, and I remember really pondering - still to this day even 13 years later - the road sign that stated
Happy was 6 miles away. I coined the phrase in my head “6 miles from Happy” and
reflected - then and continually - on how many people can live so much of their lives just outside the
boundaries of Happy. <i>{Can you see where I’m headed here? Need that road map?}</i>
;-) Well, when Maria shared that particular 50 Moments Happy prompt, I knew it
was <i>time</i> to document this story. I
just didn’t admit as I scrapped the story last month that I would need to <i>force </i>myself so completely to live
inside it. The layout includes a quote that I really can’t shake off of my
heart today, </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666; text-align: center;">“Happiness isn’t something that depends on our surroundings. It’s something we make inside ourselves.”</span><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; text-align: right;"> </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; text-align: right;"> – Corrie Ten Boom</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">So many times we live waiting on the IF/WHEN scenario. I’ll
be happy when….I’ll be successful when…I’ll be better when…And it goes on and
on, in a circuitous infinite loop. I learned this lesson back in my 30’s.
Taught it to my sons. Coined a phrase. “Choose joy. Because it is a choice.” All
the times I retorted “Choose joy" to my sons are all coming back now to haunt
me. OR, that phrase is coming back to renew me, to remind me, to refresh me. To
give me hope. To help me hang on. I don’t want to live 6 miles from Happy. I
want to live right smackdab in the big fat middle of Happy. No matter wherever
Happy may be. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Yes, my life’s walls might temporarily be on hold. There may
not be many picture perfect shots right now. The apartment lighting might be
terrible. The neighbors might be loud and annoying. This is my {albeit
temporary} Happy. I need to <i>live out</i> the truth that happiness isn’t something
that depends on our surroundings. It’s something we make inside ourselves. In the spirit of looking at things from a better perspective, of having hope, of hanging on, here's a photo of where the house is today. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Of this be sure: you do not find the happy life, you make it."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">- </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Thomas S. Mo</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">nso</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">n</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Here's to making our happy. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I’m sorry I’ve been on a bit of a hiatus from blogging. I have
continued scrapping. I just have been wallowing in my situation and avoiding writing. I’m going to
aim to do better. Hang on. This year might be a bit bumpy, but we can still
enjoy the ride. And remember I'm not aiming for "Great!" My course is headed to Happy.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Today is a Great Day to be Happy ~ 50 Moments ~ January 2016</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJS6qmMfHguYIl8zMyvzeenZ_2cC-PELALoYDQEmqcmBZvkHTc5oOnaS2JFauPhpQaBgRWyDSQXHgpg2OBvao5TvqD86DxZOsygKpvap0F0LebJlDCV-v8Ip1gg47ro3ZqToed7gtr91yE/s1600/IMG_3053.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJS6qmMfHguYIl8zMyvzeenZ_2cC-PELALoYDQEmqcmBZvkHTc5oOnaS2JFauPhpQaBgRWyDSQXHgpg2OBvao5TvqD86DxZOsygKpvap0F0LebJlDCV-v8Ip1gg47ro3ZqToed7gtr91yE/s640/IMG_3053.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Paper: Basic Simple Stories</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Title: Silhouette Cut File</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-30846534172163517822015-12-30T11:28:00.001-06:002015-12-30T11:28:55.540-06:00She Wanted to Savor Every Moment<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>{Let me say at the beginning that I lost my entire post last night when I went to add photos. So if this seems choppy or a little off, it's because it just very well might be. Life is all about pressing on.} ;-)</i></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1f4mo6UiU_1OZqu7lK43_sFLgBJLBIepfrbOleSidhOj18lLYVRxzrZiHTwgQZOer9XQiLBAkmwK0wOuB937JOxyO6MxMHVAIWwpK7bdX04Ulbt6wgur3_aXElGBdzp-KTeJGuqmqTk7/s1600/Photo+on+11-21-15+at+1.53+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1f4mo6UiU_1OZqu7lK43_sFLgBJLBIepfrbOleSidhOj18lLYVRxzrZiHTwgQZOer9XQiLBAkmwK0wOuB937JOxyO6MxMHVAIWwpK7bdX04Ulbt6wgur3_aXElGBdzp-KTeJGuqmqTk7/s400/Photo+on+11-21-15+at+1.53+PM.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">It is hard to believe that the photo in the layout below is already two years old, two years older than this gal just above. It seems impossible that over two years have passed by already, but 51-year-old me knows that it has for sure. Am I the only one that feels that life is hurtling along like a freight train?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Not only does the calendar tell me that two years have gone past, my insides do, too. I look at that gal below sitting at the bar at her favorite restaurant, ready to blow out the solitary candle on the key lime pie, and know she is different today. Not because she looks radically different, or not even because her health or agility has changed any, but mostly because I know how she feels about life is now so radically different.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">That gal below in her favorite blue anorak had a hard time at the age of 49 going through a day without her eyes leaking. Adjusting to her first year with a bird having flown the nest, and living daily with her last bird that was yearning so desperately to also be free, was so hard on her heart. Loving is hard. Letting go hurts. Life is pressing. The struggle is real.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">It's not that today I love my children any less, or wish for any less time with them. In fact, I adore them more. They are such GOOD young men - men full of promise and hope, and men with good manners and kind hearts, men with amazing senses of humor and entertaining wit. Being with them brings me such JOY. I light up at the sound of their laughter, smile at the sight of their red bearded faces. No, today I do not love life more because I miss my children less. I guess you could say that I love life more because I am finally adapted fully {or as fully as I can be right now} to being the mom of young men, of being an empty nester, of being smack in the middle ages of my life. And, oh, it is such a very good life.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">What I love about a birthday most is having my birthday month. Not so much as a month long getting of gifts per se, but just an internal recognition that THIS is the month that I age. I begin a new year. I say goodbye to the old year. I reflect on that very good life, ponder the last several months, commemorate the gal that went through the last year, recognize the gal that came out of it, and prep that gal for a new year. I celebrate ME. I love getting a new year on my birthday, and then I love getting a new year when the calendar turns to the crisp, blank, white grid of January white. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">As I look toward 2016, I am mindful of many things. Some of you may be aware of <a href="http://aliedwards.com/projects/one-little-word" target="_blank">Ali Edwards' One Little Word</a> concept. I believe she began it in 2011. Or maybe that is just the year her promotion of it reached me. I fell in love with the idea, and I have loved my words. Each and every one of them. Loved them. I don't share much of their story, or how they come to me, but I do share the word, and then I live with it, living presently with it, day by day, for its full year of appointment. I kicked off 2011 with my first word, Light. It was followed by Hope, which was succeeded by Change, and taking me then to Thrive, bringing in my 2015 word, Create. And now Create is giving way to its successor,</span><br />
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<span data-dobid="hdw"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">sa·vor</span></span></div>
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<span class="lr_dct_ph"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">ˈsāvər/</span></span></div>
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<span class="lr_dct_ph"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><div data-dobid="dfn" style="display: inline; line-height: 15.6px;">
enjoy or appreciate (something pleasant) completely, especially by dwelling on it.</div>
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"I wanted to savor every moment"</div>
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<tr><td class="lr_dct_nyms_ttl" style="font-style: italic; padding: 0px 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">synonyms:</span></td><td style="padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a data-ved="0ahUKEwjepejL_IPKAhVC6iYKHU94AdgQ_SoIHjAA" href="https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1QJDB_enUS603US603&q=define+relish&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjepejL_IPKAhVC6iYKHU94AdgQ_SoIHjAA" style="color: #660099; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">relish</a>, enjoy (to the full), <a data-ved="0ahUKEwjepejL_IPKAhVC6iYKHU94AdgQ_SoIHzAA" href="https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1QJDB_enUS603US603&q=define+appreciate&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjepejL_IPKAhVC6iYKHU94AdgQ_SoIHzAA" style="color: #660099; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">appreciate</a>, delight in, revel in, luxuriate in,bask in </span><span style="line-height: 15.6px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"she wanted to savor every moment"</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">My word came to me in November, in my birthday month, in the month where my heart broke over my sister-in-law's passing, and in the month where I had to own an even greater portion of my own mortality, a moment when I had to take off the gloves and own that phrase, "There is no dress rehearsal." When I shared my word with my oldest son, he asked me why I chose that word, because he felt I already did that. Does he not know my word chooses me? I told him, I wanted to be <i>even more intentional</i> about it. Yes, <i>she wanted to savor every moment</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I have a decorative sign in storage, with so many of my other things. It says<i> "Life isn't measured by the breaths we take, but the moments that take our breath away." </i>Ahhhh...so much to ponder there. I miss having that daily reminder staring me in the face. I want to be busier seeking moments that take my breath away. And I want to revel in them. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And then there is that thought about living life in between the dash,</span><br />
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">“It isn’t the date on either end that counts,</span></span></span></center>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">but how they used their dash</span></span></span></center>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">for that dash between the dates</span></span></span></center>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">represents all the time</span></span></span></center>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">they spent alive on earth</span></span></span></center>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">and now only those who loved them</span></span></span></center>
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<span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">know what that little line is worth.”</span></span></span></center>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>"What that little line is worth...." </i>I want my little line to be worth so much. I don't know what your thoughts are for 2016, or for your dash for that matter, or for any contemplation of your life you might muster. But I do know this. I am here and trying to live fully out of my heart. This is what we have. This moment. This life. This very good life. I want to savor all of it. Yes, my favorite age is now. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Happy New Year to you and yours. May 2016 be more than you imagine. But more importantly, savor every moment.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">My Favorite Age is Now ~ Turning 49 ~ November 2013</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1e8spmtSGU9utp9LpmtnMY8kEbJ6gtSgWztLIUDa6cE5CSKgJE8E0LIgu4d8abg1oinzMBQ_kaRoV9xCxNlPpcnUwEtk5lPB3_pusOqpeX6fhY1zt4ClLLtSCPS-Npify5lkQhgiqWJS/s1600/IMG_6332.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1e8spmtSGU9utp9LpmtnMY8kEbJ6gtSgWztLIUDa6cE5CSKgJE8E0LIgu4d8abg1oinzMBQ_kaRoV9xCxNlPpcnUwEtk5lPB3_pusOqpeX6fhY1zt4ClLLtSCPS-Npify5lkQhgiqWJS/s640/IMG_6332.JPG" width="640" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a><span style="color: #646464; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;"> </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Paper: Basic Jillibean Soup</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Title: Silhouette Cut File</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-19613097032476584822015-11-25T18:28:00.002-06:002015-11-25T18:28:49.100-06:00Gratitude and the Fullness of Life<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Time is a funny thing. It has intervals, but cannot really be measured. It takes up space, and yet is invisible. It is priceless, and yet cannot be bought. As I recall the absolute swirl that November has been, I am humbled by this caretaker of our lives, this fickle and persnickety Father Time. He masters all and answers to none. And he marches on. One week ago today I spent my next to last day as a 50 year old. Two weeks ago today, Paris and all of Europe was normal. Three weeks ago today, my sister-in-law woke up at the age of 50 for the first time. Time is fleeting and fast, and is not sure beneath our step. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">As I pause in preparation for our national day of Thanksgiving in America, I ponder that this is the first year where neither of our sons will be home, and I ponder that this is the first year that my brother-in-law maneuvers his way through his first holiday without his life partner, and I ponder that we all live on a thin line, walking that fine wire between yes and no, today and tomorrow, here and gone.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Since turning 50 last November, I have lived in as much a state as humanly possible of awareness, of presence, of seizing moments, of living fully. As that year has slipped away and now vanished, I am not sure I was aware enough, present enough, captive enough. I don't know to what degree it is even attainable. I saw some photographs recently of Steve this time last year, fresh from the hospital, dealing with a stint, not well and the tell being in his eyes. I look at him closely each day, as if trying to view with my naked eye his insides and assess his health. I want there to be enough. I want there to be more. Of everything.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And yet time mocks me, letting me know that will never be the case, that it is impossible, that I am only given this day, this moment, this breath, this thought, this second. My sweet sister-in-law Susan knew that fully. Battling cancer, faced with obstacles daily in limits that varied, she chose joy and emitted hope. Up to hours before her surgery, one that would take her life ultimately, she looked death in the eye and was courageous and without fear, letting her hospital staff know she <i>was</i> in the best hands, the hands of the Great Physician. I cannot really shake the calm calculating reality of her unquenchable faith, in what would be seen by many as her darkest hour. But, I can try to attain to it, to grasp it, to nurture it. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">As I navigate my days, I think of life from Susan's perspective. Not in a morbid way, but in a way that sees each day as a gift. I think, ironically, of the Disney movie "Cinderella", the live action one. I think not of the pumpkin to carriage, but I think of the long suffering Ella, sleeping on cinders, serving stepsisters, smiling with her companions, showing joy and happiness amidst it all. I think of the scene where her own mother tells her goodbye, of admonishing young Ella to "have courage and be kind." And I see that paradigm as the lens through which Susan lived her last year and a half. While she battled cancer, she chose daily to have courage and be kind. We are so thankful that the cancer did not claim victory over her. We grieve immensely over the misfortune of her aortic dissection, but choose joy in that breaking of her heart as claiming her life versus the poisoned cells inside her. I think that is why Susan could sign "I love you" and wave goodbye as she lay there intubated -- she knew cancer was not winning, but that she was winning.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I read this scripture the night of her viewing, searching for some distraction from the ever present visual, seeking some encouragement from a faith that spans four decades:</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #993300; font-family: "georgia" , "palatino"; line-height: 25.6px;"> "</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #993300; font-family: "georgia" , "palatino"; line-height: 25.6px;">Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God." - Colossians 3:1-3</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I have gone through my days following her death in the normal fashion: work, leisure, sleep, repeat. But my mind has not really stopped processing her passing. I think of her loved ones - my family - left behind daily, praying incessantly for our healing and peace, for the holes in daily lives to fill over with joy and warm memories. But I think mostly of her looking down the barrel of the shotgun she faced, and staring it down unflinchingly. I think of the courage it took for her to acknowledge the need to say goodbye, and to be okay in saying it. I think of the gift of her signing </span><i style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">I love you</i><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> over and over to her family, a final message that could stand the test of time, and give heart to those fainting under the weight of grief. Yes, her mind was on things above.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I do not mean to be all macabre on this eve of counting our blessings. I mean it more than anything to be a message of intense hope, a message of counting the greatest blessing of all - of being sure of your salvation, of being surrounded by those you love, of being alive and present in this moment. Even though my boys are not here, and I am not in my home, or actually a house, I am more grateful this year than in any other previous November. Our hope is not fixed on this earth, but on things above, and toward that end, I look for gratitude in life, for gratitude in all things.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I found this quote today and wanted to share it:</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #993300; font-family: "georgia" , "palatino"; line-height: 25.6px;">"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend." -- Melody Beattie</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">My hope for you this Thanksgiving is that no matter where you are, no matter what you eat, no matter who you are with, may this day be a season of intense gratitude in your life, a moment where you can see that all good things are from above, that love has been lavished on you, that our hope is eternal. May you have a day where you remember all that has been done for you, and reflect on the fullness of your life. May the coming year be one where you have acceptance, order, clarity...and where you can see the abundance in your life, the overflowing goodness.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This layout shows our last Thanksgiving spent at Murphy Manor. We didn't know at the time that it would be our last Thanksgiving there. And here's the deal - we never know our last anything. Never. Take in the richness of this moment, and savor the blessings of the season. Look around you and see - you, too, have overflowing goodness in your life.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. Be blessed.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Overflowing Goodness ~ Thanksgiving ~ November 2014</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a><span style="color: #646464; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;"> </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Paper: Basic Grey</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Title Font: Rochester</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-49986740227502034272015-10-16T13:25:00.002-05:002015-10-16T13:25:50.661-05:00Adventure is Out There<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">We weren't sure where we were headed when we left the house. Thank goodness for Siri. I mean, Springfield, Missouri isn't everyone's dream destination. ;-) We had some college friends that were from Joplin, Missouri, but I safely say that before June 2011 I really hadn't felt the Show Me state had lived up to its name. We visited St. Louis and the arch in 1997 for a very brief, and now very blurred, drive-through trip, and other than perhaps driving through it as a child with my parents, I had never been to Missouri.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">But, you see, back in 2010 I stumbled onto the sweet scrapbooking nectar of the sketch a la Scrapbook Generation, and it wasn't long before I was one of their avid fans. I drooled over every Allison Davis layout long before I knew what Hall of Fame was, and the clean linear style displayed in their sketches and in their work was one to which I always and immediately gravitated. Once I put two and two together and found out that I could use their design work to play with on my own, I was hooked and set about to budget for and snag all of their sketchbooks. I will tell you from that moment to now, I can count on probably one hand the number of layouts I have created that does <i>not </i>use one of their sketches. When they went to electronic sketch downloads in 2013, I was truly in heaven, since I just might have a reputation for my affair with instant gratification. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">So way back in 2010, Scrapbook Generation sent out an email to its customer base, announcing Scrapapalooza. Scrapapa - whata? A crop. A mega crop. A crop with 350 women. A crop with 350 women and an onsite store. A crop with 350 women, on onsite store, classes being taught by Allison Davis, and oh yeah, don't forget the chocolate fountain. Hey, <i>they</i> <i>had me</i> at CROP. Everything else after that was just fruit for that fountain! My incredible and amazing husband did not think I was zany for wanting to go, and in fact agreed to take me. The boys were providentially out of town with a church event, and so plans were made!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The crop was registered for, the hotel was booked, the bags were packed, and the course was set. We would head up Friday night after work, I would crop on Saturday, while Steve would explore the metropolis of Springfield, and then we would head home Sunday. And oh my goodness, you would have thought I was a kid headed to the North Pole in December!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I couldn't believe I was going to get to go to meet the people that had revolutionized and re-energized my scrapbooking, and I would also get to learn from them, and scrapbook under their watchful eye. I can still remember this trip so well. We grabbed a quick dinner Friday evening at Culver's in McKinney before heading due north, and then we were bound for Missouri. Show Me state or bust. What a terrible ride through Oklahoma! Bad roads, small towns, speed zones, traffic lights, 18-wheelers. No matter. We were focused on the destination, not the journey itself. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Some trips are that way -- where it's all about where you are going to end up, versus how exactly you get there. I'm okay with that. Not every trip is a scenic drive though the Natchez Trace. We were together, and we were headed toward fun. Well, at least I was anyway. ;-) Steve was really just a tag-a-long on this trip more so than any other time, and we were both okay with that. We just truly like being together in any fashion. Always have, always will.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">We arrived in Springfield safe and sound. Saturday morning found me bright and early toward the back of the line, waiting for the big doors to open up and admit us to 12 hours of cropping heaven. Steve helped me unload at the curb in that early blinding summer morning sun. It was hot already, I do recall. Even that was okay. It was a wonderful day, all that I hoped for. The Show Me state delivered! I came away from the day with some pages done, but more importantly, I learned some things that day, and even better, I made some new friends. I might even have snagged a few more sketchbooks and paper packs. A road trip just doesn't get any better than that. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Sure, we stayed at a cheesy little hotel, ate a lot of chain restaurant food, drove more miles than is normal in a weekend, but it was an adventure, to be sure. I love my guy. I love our spirit of adventure. And I'm game for any road trip anytime. If it includes scrapbooking, that's all the better. But usually most of them just include making memories. And that's okay, too. It gives me something to scrap about later. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">We love that Disney/Pixar movie Up. Love the cute characters, the love story, the silly little boy, the crotchedy old man, but mostly we love the message. Adventure is out there! Yes, yes it is! And I aim to keep finding it, one road trip at a time.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Road Trip ~ Headed to Scrapapalooza ~ June 2011</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a><span style="color: #646464; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Paper: Bo Bunny</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Cork: My Favorite Things</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Title: Silhouette Cut File</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-84773996935084890002015-09-30T12:32:00.002-05:002015-09-30T16:56:13.623-05:00My Little Punkin Head<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">I think Steve and I have adapted fairly well to both boys spreading their wings and launching to college campuses that are 600+ miles from home. I think we really have. I love that he and I have time together, and I am naturally one to crave peace and quiet. Goodness knows we have both of those now in plenty. All in all, life is fairly good presently for all four of us, and we are all enjoying where life's path currently has us placed. I will say, though, that it is hard on me to miss celebrating my April birthday boy's big day with him <i>on the day</i>. Oh, yes, I am that girl. I believe in a birthday day. I was raised with it. Growing up, it meant we had a chore free day that started with being sung to in bed, and it ended with a home-cooked family meal around the formica table that was one of our choosing. Good times, those childhood birthdays. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">As I grew up, I was for the evolution of the birthday day to a birthday week, which gave way to a birthday month. Oh, the birthday month is only in my head. Dear hubby won't play along with it. {I guess I am already far too big of a brat for his indulgence.} ;-) But, birthday month nonetheless do I have. And my Philip ascribes to the birthday month notion as well. It is nice to not be the only one in the family as such. :-) So now this April birthday boy of mine has turned twenty and twenty-one without me, celebrating his day in Nashvegas among his college friends. Without me there to celebrate with him. He ought to be ashamed. ;-) It's just another measurable moment that gives proof to his emerging adulthood. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">This past April, that little adorable baby boy of mine turned the big twenty-one. Now, our sons enjoy our company, but when it got down to it, it just didn't seem like us visiting him on campus that weekend would be how he would want to celebrate his big day. Steve and I are not <i>that</i> hip. ;-) So, we sent Andrew from Denver to Nashville in our stead. Andrew doesn't have Friday class anyway, so he flew over on Thursday evening and was there on the big birthday day, on Friday, April 10, when Philip Edward turned twenty-one. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">He's a long way from that little punkin head now, isn't he? Somehow both of my tow-headed blonde little boys turned into redheads. Redheaded young men with big red beards. Yes, he is older, and yes, every day is a gift. It has been my absolute joy and pleasure to have a front row seat in the metamorphosis of little blonde Philip to big tall red-headed Philip. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">There are parts of him that have remained constant throughout his life, the chief component being his strong and undying affection for all things Star Wars. He was collecting the little figures before he could even properly pronounce them, and somewhere in storage right now are the remnants of his Star Wars Micro Machine collection, including the big Death Star. He has always been a reader. He has always been a gamer. He has always loved traditions. He has always loved for the four of us to be together. He has always laughed heartily at the antics of his brother. He has always loved animals. He has always been quick to smile, and quick to frown, ever expressive, letting us know quickly and easily where he stood on things. He has always loved fruit and sweet drinks, travel and adventure, trying new things, and having some stay at home downtime.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">He is developing an affinity for photography. He secretly nurses the skill of writing. He yearns for a life of purpose. I cannot see past the curve in the earth, and neither can he, and so we wait expectantly to see how his life fully unfolds, and to see what fork in the road God will lead him to. It is such a gift for me to continue to see him grow, even though physically he won't get any taller. His growth now will predominantly be on the inside, as he continues to be molded by life choices and his burgeoning adulthood personal decisions.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">If I could wish anything for him, it would be to live in his skin comfortably, to own completely all of his gifts, and to set about to use them with the greatest purpose imaginable. I feel like he can do this. I feel like he will do this. And I aim to sit and watch and enjoy the show for as long as possible. We had an absolutely wonderful time celebrating his birthday during our May family vacation. I know that our time together is less frequent than any of us would like, but I am forever grateful that we do all enjoy being together, and that we have such fun together. It may have been his birthday, but celebrating it together in May was my gift.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Look who's 21! My little punkin head, that's who. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Happy Birthday, Philip. Thank you for being a gift in 1994, and every day of your life since then. </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Look Who Is 21 ~ </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Philip's Birthday ~ April 2015 ~ as seen in CREATE by Scrapbook Generation</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;">This layout was featured in the September issue of Create by Scrapbook Generation which can be seen </span><a href="http://www.scrapbookgeneration.com/magazine/" style="color: #17879b; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;"> on their website. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a> </div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-60709866020961591872015-09-20T14:48:00.003-05:002015-09-20T14:48:43.243-05:00A Fresh Pot of Coffee...Come On Over<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>She taught me to invest in others. She taught me to give generously, and then give just a little bit more. She taught me to laugh loud and often, at myself and with others. She taught me to listen - to my heart, to my intuition, to the person sitting next to me, to my spouse. She taught me to believe in my children, to defend them, to fight for them, to protect them, and when appropriate, to spoil them. She taught me to entertain graciously - to have an open hearth and a ready home, and to light it up with the love of others. She taught me to put my best foot forward, and that said foot should be in sporty shoes and have a matching handbag. She taught me how to fight for myself and to win graciously. She taught me how to shake off the naysayers and be true to my own path and my beliefs. She taught me the beauty in unrelentless love, that spans decades, for your family. She taught me how to love a best friend, and to not be afraid of having him for your husband. She taught me how to cultivate an enduring marriage, and to shine the light on your mate from the twinkle in your eye. She taught me how to find joy in the little things, and that there are no little things. She taught me that it was better to live the gospel than speak the gospel, that Jesus was bigger than our problems, and that God was our father. She taught me that it was okay to love coffee, chocolate, fritos and puppies. She taught me that - in all things and times and places and spaces - people mattered most, and loving them was the best work a woman could do. She was a beautiful soul, and my life is blessed beyond measure for having had her in it for all of my life, and yet not near enough of my life. Heaven has been waiting for her for awhile, because who could not be excited about the chance to sit on the couch next to Barbara and catch her up on life, and whisper secrets, and giggle over coffee about the best shared things, the stories we hold dear to our hearts, the love for life and family. Every person she loved here will carry a piece of her in their hearts, in the giggle of a story, in a shared devilish grin, in a wink across the room, in a knowing glance of empathy, in the holding of a hand, in the telling of a story. And I think she would like that. You were loved beyond measure. And you will be missed beyond reason. Thank you for being such a beautiful soul, and for sharing yourself so generously with the world. You were a gift to us all. You were a gift to me. And now you are a gift to heaven. Save me a seat, dear one, and put on a pot of coffee. I will be there sometime. And I will want to sit next to you when I get there. </i></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I wrote the above today, this Sunday morning, about 24 hours after I got the horrible phone call, and about 26 hours after her actual passing. Even though we age, and life's end is inevitable, there is never really a time, a moment, a second, when you are willing to acknowledge and concede the end. At least not this gal. I want every second to count, and then I want them to count again.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Barbara was a gem. She was a sassy women in an age and time when sass wasn't always necessarily accommodated. She had two daughters older than me, and she was gracious enough in her love to allow others in, including little me, and in my mind I liked to think of her as more than my mom's coffee buddy, more than an aunt, more than a friend. I explained to others that she was my "second mom". She loved me enough to want the best for me, and knew me well enough, and knew my family well enough, to guide me with </span>wisdom<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">, tenderness, and love in any and every situation when I sought her counsel. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Early memories include </span>sitting<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> on her lap while she shared coffee at our kitchen table with my mom. There was hardly ever a time when my mom could get away with going to Barbara's without me </span>begging to come along. I knew her favorite slippers, I knew the kitchen drawer that held the Fritos, I loved the step up in her bedroom into the "secret area". There is no telling just how many secrets were shared within the dark rich paneling that ensconced her family room. I adored her Christmas decorations each year in her dining room and living room. Each time I would visit, I was prepared to move the newspaper out of the way, be ready to catch up on life, and would delight in seeing what treasures she had picked up lately. I loved how she loved her husband, and I marveled at how deeply he adored her. If there was ever a moment when I thought a perfect marriage could exist, I would say it would have happened on 310 Cedar Lane, in one of the moments I was blessed to be in their company. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Barbara loved the saying, "If you don't have something nice to say about someone, come sit next to me," which she would always finish off with a tilt of her head, her deep raspy chuckle, a twinkle in her eye, and a sheepish grin. But the truth of that was that while she loved to hear the latest in your life, she was quick to offer wise counsel, and having had many siblings, she had a life perspective that countered brash youthful ideals and helped me stay grounded. Through all phases of my life. There probably has never been another soul with which I have been so painfully honest. I would tell her anything and everything, and I knew she wanted to know because she loved me, and wanted to help me ferret out the ups and downs, the highs and lows of life. I was her Penny Rooskie, her Penny Renny. And she was charming enough to let me think I was her favorite.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">After her December 2012 fall, where she broke her shoulder, we were so thankful she recovered. When she fell the following December, breaking her hip, it was too hard to believe that fate could be so cruel, and it was harder still to concede that she would never fully bounce back from that. I saw her twice in her nursing home, taking Steve with me once, and my sons with me the second time. Her face lit up both times when she saw me, and as she greeted me, I just knew she was telling me, as she had for so, so, so many years, "Well, look who it is. Don't you look cute. Come sit next to me." Her brain couldn't make all the words make sense, but the woman I loved was there in her expressions, in her smile, in her eyes, in her hand gestures, and in the love for me that I could still feel. I still chuckle when I think about her going right for those brownies. She did love her sweets. After all, what better companion could a cup of dark, strong coffee have? </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Barbara, you will be missed. There will never be another you for so many of us. I pray sweet Carlton enough -- enough to get him through his remaining days here without his beloved bride of 61 years. My husband, my sons and I will always remember you, and we will love every memory we are blessed to have of you. Oh, to hear the phone ring, and the voice say, "Are you home? Put on a pot of coffee, I'm coming over," or "What are you doing? I've got a fresh pot of coffee. Come on over." Oh, honey. I'd love to. I'd truly love to.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Barbara ~ Remembering a Gem ~ September 19, 2015</span><br />
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-65168880379029366382015-09-17T12:41:00.002-05:002015-09-17T12:52:00.469-05:00September CREATE - You'll FALL for It!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">It's another issue of CREATE! the most amazing part about being on this Design Team is that I get sneaks of everyone's projects as they are completed. And they blow me away every issue! Allison's cover art is just spectacular. Issue 16 is up and live, so go check it out! 200+ pages of amazing layouts, cards, tags, full of inspiration! You can find <a href="http://www.scrapbookgeneration.com/magazine/" target="_blank">the CREATE magazine</a> on the <a href="http://www.scrapbookgeneration.com/" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation website</a> in the Magazine tab, or click the link above.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcF3Thjdg9I28xIjH-aWRUP0P4rmvp02cRVOfhIrRyJouryDRdOiszoaBhFnVGYIJ6MTbmCIBli3b4G3KDtnYBXZhrFbmz5GrZsKlDlo2_ZjAFTlKxVHqt-tk0sCL9U31zfXTrNMhGPKYL/s1600/11952744_10205243803279553_5060208767310455230_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcF3Thjdg9I28xIjH-aWRUP0P4rmvp02cRVOfhIrRyJouryDRdOiszoaBhFnVGYIJ6MTbmCIBli3b4G3KDtnYBXZhrFbmz5GrZsKlDlo2_ZjAFTlKxVHqt-tk0sCL9U31zfXTrNMhGPKYL/s640/11952744_10205243803279553_5060208767310455230_o.jpg" width="486" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Now, some sneaks of my work! I did three submissions this issue. We had a product challenge where we featured stamps. I used ten sets of stamps on this two page layout and really loved how it turned out.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And this month Miss Debbie had a wonderful two page sketch feature that I opted to play along on. I love the versatility of the sketches, and turned hers upside down to create a fun birthday look. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And what would a September/October issue be without a fun Halloween layout? I had so much fun playing with this new Carta Bella paper.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">I will post a blog article about each of these layouts later this month, but go check out the fun magazine issue now!</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;"> </span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-65675834915219801742015-08-31T12:19:00.002-05:002015-08-31T12:19:49.795-05:00Snickerdoodle Sunday<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">As I sit and sip coffee, I think back on the week, and in my mind I land on Thursday. It always seems like any day can be national something day. There's an ice cream day, a siblings day, and even the dog days of summer get their turn. National Dog Day was Thursday. My sister teased "Facebook is going to the dogs." I told her she was so punny.</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;"> As we continue to settle in to life in suspended animation, aka life in our apartment, aka life in the clubhouse, we continue to find new things to do each day, new places to explore, new things to hunt for, new discoveries about what is in storage vs. the apartment, all while we grapple with the last few boxes {still} to unpack.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">I am not a very patient person. I am not. But I would like to say that since we have now been in the apartment for 4 weeks, and we still have not completely unpacked everything, and I have not gone crazy, that perhaps I am more patient than I realize, or than I give myself credit for. I have *had* time to unpack, but I have chosen to do other things. I have chosen to spend as much time with my boys while they are home in their own brief differing windows of pre-Europe time, I have chosen to create things, to take a road trip to Springfield, Missouri, to get a massage and then brunch with my guys, to visit with a friend, to sit on my tiny patio sipping coffee....As I yearn for things to be completely "settled" in our new life, I have been able to balance that with the greater need for being in the moment and living in that moment, rather than feeding the inner beast that demands to be completely organized. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">I have been wanting to start our evening walks again. Two factors have been against me: the sultry still hot evenings, and the lack of a "new path" here. The weather cooled off a bit, and Truman and I both have been dying for a walk, so Saturday night we decided to just walk around the apartment complex. You should have seen how excited my boo was to finally be prancing around. He was fresh from his beauty appointment Saturday morning, so his step was lighter than usual, as if he knew just how darn cute he was with his new cut and sporty red bandanna. While the walking path was not picturesque or scenic, we made the most of it and just embraced where we were. Isn't that such a life lesson? I think that is how I have handled much of this transition, including the few remaining unpacked boxes. I have made the most of my time, and so be it if we still are a mess here and there in the corners. When given the choice to unpack, or walk this incredibly cute dog, wouldn't anyone choose the latter? ;-)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Truman has been such a joy to us in our days of transition. He has settled in to the apartment life like a champ, and has not once complained about the loss of his big green backyard, full of wild bunnies to chase. He is unsure of all the noises above us, but he will take most of them with a tilt of his head, or a whimper, reserving only the really loud noises for his bark of warning. He is so worried about his momma that he thinks someone upstairs is out to get me. ;-) </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Andrew has been gone two weeks now, and Philip leaves in one week, and this little Truman guy is the one that we get to keep with us. He is turning into quite the rotten little boy. If I had any doubts about that, my husband was sure to let me know just what he thought of my holding this baby in my lap while I did my hair and makeup the other day. Boo was a little scared and my lap is big enough anyway. ;-) Truman has been right there with us during all of his summer moving swirl. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I had to really chuckle at him on the afternoon we drove back from Tyler. We had run some furniture we were getting rid of over to my sister, and we spent the time there out on the back patio, watching her four youngest children swim. We had taken Truman with us, as it was a day that included an Open House for our home while it was on the market still. We decided he would enjoy the field trip better than being penned up in the laundry room while we were gone and strangers roamed the house. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And we were right. He just ran circles around that pool, checking out every little change in the kids' activities, and also dealing with my sister's horse puppy, her Grand Pyrenees Scout. We had not been in the car driving long before little boo just settled down to nap, much like little boys that had traveled a decade and a half ago in that same back seat. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Yes, Truman is spoiled rotten. But he is my best boo after all, my only boo. Thursday might have been National Dog Day. But in my house, every day is dog day. And I wouldn't have it any other way.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">You Are Spoiled Rotten ~ Truman's First Swim Party ~ June 2015</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-10482313700419774752015-08-22T00:30:00.000-05:002015-08-22T00:30:01.475-05:00Happy Birthday, Mom!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The absolute best part about moving and now having a 30 minute commute, instead of my former 10-12 minute commute, is that I have my daily momma time again. For the 7 years that I drove across town to west Dallas, I would spend that hour driving on the phone with my mom. And when I left that job and started my wonderful job that is 3 miles from our house in Murphy, I sorely missed those long chatty drives I took with my mom. Now, serendipitously, I get back just enough chat time to hear all the good stuff. And since my older sister retired, I am banking on keeping all of the days for me instead of splitting them with her, as we did last school year. ;-) We will see Monday when that east Texas school bell rings how my retired librarian sister manages her phone time with mom. I'm thinking early bird gets the worm. Ha.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">One never knows the stories you will hear when one talks to my mom. On the last three phone conversations I have had with her {Thursday morning, Thursday evening, and Friday morning} I have heard the same story about her big decision on whether or not to get a perm now, or wait until October. It's cute, because the story stays identical almost in each iteration, and I chuckle inwardly at her quandary over the long lasting durability of her perm, and timing it just right for our next Girls Weekend, which is in December. In Florida. {Yes!! But, that is another story for another day.} See, mom is trying to time her perm so that it will be "just right" for our next Girls Weekend together. I always tease everyone that my own hair issues have deep roots. They stem from my mom being a beautician before she was a mom, and all of us girls having hair situations regularly while growing up. But I cannot fault her for deliberating over timing. Durned if I don't still do it myself, even with my short carefree and easy cut.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Today's phone conversation started with me wishing my mom HAPPY BIRTHDAY. She rejected my wish, stating matter of factly, "Well, today is the day I was born, but it's <i>not</i> my birthday." See, about 10 years ago, mother needed a copy of her birth certificate for some legal matter, and in the procurement of that, my dear sweet mom, youngest baby girl of nine children, discovered that she was in fact born on August twenty-FIRST. For over 50 years, she had celebrated her birthday on August twenty-SECOND. And she decided on that day of discovery that she was keeping her celebration day on the 22nd, and just let that 21st day remain on the ignored list. I have teased her most years since then on the 21st. But this morning's response was by far one of the best ones I've ever received. I told her, "Well, mom, just how many people can say that?!" We both had a good laugh. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">{And mom, I am writing this ON the 21st and setting it to post just after midnight today, which will be on the 22nd, so that you will get the email ON the 22nd. So, I am saying Happy Birthday <i>on</i> your birthday, and you will get it on <i>your</i> birthday. And I know you will think about all of that for a little bit.} ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And mom, even though I gave you your gift earlier, I meant to send you a card, but I, in my full fledged 50-year-old mind could not remember to do it, still being in the swirl of getting Andrew off....But maybe this will make up for it. This is a poem I found by Debbie Burrous and it makes me think of you, and it makes my eyes leak a little, too.</span><br />
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A Poem For Mom</h1>
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You are the sunlight in my day,<br />You are the moon I see far away.<br />You are the tree I lean upon,<br />You are the one that makes troubles be gone.<br />You are the one who taught me life,<br />How not to fight, and what is right.<br />You are the words inside my song,<br />You are my love, my life, my mom.<br />You are the one who cares for me,<br />You are the eyes that help me see.<br />You are the one who knows me best,<br />When it's time to have fun and time to rest.<br />You are the one who has helped me to dream,<br />You hear my heart and you hear my screams.<br />Afraid of life but looking for love,<br />I'm blessed for God sent you from above.<br />You are my friend, my heart, and my soul<br />You are the greatest friend I know.<br />You are the words inside my song,<br />You are my love, my life, my Mom.</div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I love you more every day, and I am so excited to celebrate your 78th year, in my 50th year to be in existence on your birthday. I can't wait to hear about your day and I'll even be happy to hear the perm story again. But even beyond that, I am looking forward to our big trip together in December, while remembering fondly our weekend together in April. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I am blessed by you, and the gift of my sisters. It is wonderful to be in the presence of beautiful souls, and it is phenomenal to know that you are all my family, my friends. I love every day spent with you, and like weekends, there are never enough of them to satisfy me. I love you! Happy Birthday, Mom!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Beautiful Souls ~ Girls Weekend ~ April 26, 2015</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Paper: Echo Park</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Title Fonts: Lavenderia</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-61000773366204508602015-08-21T10:46:00.000-05:002015-08-21T10:46:16.937-05:00The Turning of a Page<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">This morning I am texting with my son who is in Paris. I am perfectly fine with the fact that he is eating real French onion soup while I am sitting at my desk, working to fund the very expense of his school semester abroad. I do wish deeply, though, that I could have a sip of his espresso, and a bite of his chocolate croissant, and see his smiling eyes. And I wish also that he would post another photo on Instagram. I am wanting another peek at something beyond the Eiffel Tower from Day One escapades and the Arc de Triomphe from Day Two adventuring. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The other night after work and an oil change, I finished putting away the remaining unpacked remnants of Scrap Central Clubhouse, proof that we are settling in. {<a href="http://pennyscraps.blogspot.com/2015/08/scrap-central-clubhouse-nickel-tour.html" target="_blank">Scrap Central Clubhouse blog post here.</a>} Now that one birdie has flown the coop for the fall and our resident foodie is abroad, our home life is settling down somewhat. Our oldest son remains at home, but remember he is my game boy, and most evenings I find him either gone to his part-time job, or laying atop his bed, game controller in hand. It is in his DNA. And I completely understand and embrace him. Sometimes I wonder if we are the only family of four that is comprised solely of introverts. It is a good thing that we do all enjoy being introverts together on occasion. ;-)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Our oldest did comment on Day Three of being in the apartment, from atop same said bed, to the three of us in the kitchen/dining room, about 12 feet away from him, "I like this new space. We are so close to each other." It has been enjoyable to hunker down together, and be together in our little small space, where different rooms still have the proximity and sameness to them to lend to one a sense of community, of shared time...separate, but joined somehow. We have two weeks and four days remaining with him home, and as I count and, disbelieving the number, recount the days, I am surprised that there are so few left, and my eyes once again do the leaking thing.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">It has been a tumultuous few weeks, to say the least. A dear friend described them as tender times. Yes, to be sure. The boys rolled into town, post summer jobs, to a frenzy of last minute packing and moving from our home, and then unpacking into the apartment, and then suspending all of that busyness to just enjoy being together for twelve non-moving days, and then the gradual shifting of together time to the final "get ready to go to Europe" last weekend all together at home phase, the reality that they are both going abroad for the fall, to different cities, for differing semester lengths, setting in heavy on the parental hearts. Yes, tender times to be sure.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">My summer was so chaotic that it didn't really seem like summer at all. Full of fun, good times to be sure, but opening a conversation about moving on June 6 can do that to a summer. You know, kill it. I am going to try somehow to eek out a few more flip flop, ice cream, sun soaking days. Thankfully, hopefully, the north Texas September weather will cooperate with me, and let me indulge myself with the quiet joy that can be Indian Summer. Whether or not I was ready though, summer has indeed ended and the checkout lines at Target last night, coupled with the incredibly overflowing mess there of notebook binders and pocket folders, reminded me that school has started, as if my putting my son on a plane to Paris wasn't notice enough. I believe the big yellow school buses will begin their routes Monday in the neighborhoods where I live and work and drive. It is nice to not be entirely certain. I have my own reminders and tells to manage outside the scope of the local ISD's bell ringings.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I am so oriented to a school schedule, though, that even though my big man boys will be schooling across the pond on another continent, and therefore needed no "back to school shopping" this year, other than for luggage and shoes, that this time of year always has me pause and savor the moments and memories that revolved around school calendars and assignments and events. I cannot see August on a calendar and not think "Back to School". I am just programmed systemically to recall the smell of notebook paper, to hear the sound of the chalk on the board, to taste the over buttered perennially served green beans, to see desks in straight rows, like soldiers, ready to battle the incoming masses, to touch the pages of a new textbook and turn them quickly to scope out the future adventures.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">I have always been a learner and an avid reader. Oh, mercy, the sound of my mother in the car every summer vacation chanting the same dialog is stamped on my brain, "I don't know how you can sit there with your nose in a book while we are driving through all of this beautiful country." Mother was never a reader until her first shoulder surgery, and so she literally could not fathom the deep adoration of a well-developed plot, much less reading non-stop for every waking daylight car riding hour. Me? I would pore over anything I could get my hands on, and eagerly anticipated the choices I would make on our annual pre-vacation you can only check out ten </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">pilgrimage</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> to the public library. Summer vacation to me as a child was as much about reading as it was about sightseeing and touring.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The boys are readers, too. Each in differing levels and genres, but akin in the ability to follow along cult-like to their respective authors and characters, and reveling in certain release dates and having a list of books to hang on to, even long after it has been read. I don't think they are as voracious of a reader as myself, but I attribute that more to the scarcity of genres that appeal to young men as opposed, say, to a female at any given age. I can read almost any genre, and follow quite few whereas they are limited to maybe one or two genres....</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Enough of that, though, except to say that we are at times a reading house, and quiet afternoons where one can sit and read are available as one desires, and we have always made space in the budget for books, never saying no to a book purchase, and even going out on an errand solely for the purchase of a book. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">We are house, too, that mourned the passing of Borders bookstore, while yet also secretly embracing the electronic book with our other half of our self, and so knowing we cannot have it both ways, we elect still to buy "real" books as we can, and I should also add that my husband refuses to read an electronic book in any capacity. I would confess that I am really the only e-reader in our house, and it is strictly economics to me, of space and money more than anything. My preference is the big bulky real book, but I read so fast that I cannot contain all of their presence, and I cannot afford them either, given their e-cousin is so much more of a cheaper date.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">One May 2009 afternoon found both boys reading downstairs, and just in that instant I had the presence to snap a few photos of them, just more of my every day pursuit to document life. As I look back at these photos now, and see them in their metamorphosing wonder years, sitting on a couch that was surrendered to the garage sale in a house that is no longer ours, I am nostalgic beyond belief, and also simultaneously so very happy that this random reading moment was one remembered. I can recall their tickled annoyance with me for taking the photos, their willingness to be photographed, but their unwillingness to stop reading long enough to be bothered to look up for the camera and smile, and the smirking that ensued on their faces over their clever rejection yet once again of mom and her camera fetish.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Oh, to be sure, that afternoon of reading on the couch, pages were turning. Not only were the boys plowing through their book, but it was almost as if they were growing up before my eyes. Physical pages were turning and in just as real a fashion, virtual pages were turning, too. Boys were giving way to men. School days and recess giving way to semester hours and studies abroad. Oh, for the bliss of another summer afternoon spent reading on the couch. If only I could manage the turning of a page.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Reading on the Couch ~ Boys with Books ~ May 9, 2009</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px;">Sketch Credit: </span><a href="http://scrapbookgeneration.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=213" style="color: #17879b; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13.3333330154419px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Scrapbook Generation</a><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Paper: October Afternoon</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Title Fonts: American Typewriter and Mahogany Script</span></div>
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penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5514585304887180544.post-31475765683026160712015-08-20T20:35:00.003-05:002015-08-21T10:49:16.137-05:00Scrap Central Clubhouse: The Nickel Tour<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">So several of you have been aware that we downsized -- sold the house, bought smaller house, living in apartment until said smaller house is done. That's instant chaos, with a small serving of emotion, and a side order of excitement. Looking long term at Scrap Central 2.0 has been the hardest part of it all...Oh, wait...being in the apartment in between with no cabinets is actually the hardest part....Oh, wait...trying to do anything in the apartment that will be part of the long term solution is the hardest part. Yes, that's it!</span><br style="background-color: white;" /><br style="background-color: white;" /><span style="background-color: white;">I have spent some considerable time on Pinterest in the last 60 days. So many ideas out there. I have been looking in particular for Scrap Central 2.0 inspiration, and have found some great ideas. One idea just blew me away and I shared this idea below for an addition to Scrap Central with some friends. {This new house will, after all, be the house that PEN-Terest built. :78: } This idea is found in this <a href="http://craftystorage.blogspot.com/2014/02/marleene-craft-room.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+blogspot/qOKEf+(CRAFTY+STORAGE)" target="_blank">blog post</a>.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">So I had to go from this below, on move-in day, to an organized chaos, getting my space ready for the Hemnes dresser from Ikea to be added underneath my 4x4 Expedit from Ikea, as per the above inspiration. Now, my Scrap Central - Clubhouse space is actually in the "dining room" of the 1200 s.f. apartment. Dining rooms are overrated, yes? When we found this apartment, I knew immediately this space would "work" just fine for the 7 months we are here. Bonus, I can see the TV, </span><i style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: left;">and my husband</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large; text-align: left;">, and almost all of the living space in the apartment, ;-) from my scrap chair. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">^Move In Day</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">11 boxes of albums to unpack and 10 boxes of scrap supplies</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I felt like having more boxes of albums than supplies was a win.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">^ Day 3 of living here...iMac still in the box...</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Hubby and my son ran to Ikea on one of hubbies' days off - Thursday. {At my Ikea, the Hemnes dresser I have is $249.} And my beloved youngest darling son built this Hemnes dresser for me in just over 5 hours on Saturday before heading to Paris Monday...and I get to smile as I recall that each time I use it. It was a fun day, just he and I home, and we watched Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and about 1/3 of Sky Fall while he built it. He finished it before we finished the third movie. He worked on building it - so strong and so patient - and I sat here in my chair and actually scrapped on a layout as part of a Challenge...and it was bliss for me to be here scrapping, with him right there "next to me" building the dresser.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My boy, hard at work. I am so proud of him because he did this without any mistakes and was very patient and fastidious - and perfect! - with it!! Boy, was his dad happy when he came home from work and found out it was all done!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And so I took Monday night to Wednesday night to unpack the final four boxes of supplies and get them sorted out and figure out what went into the closet and what went into the dres. I am fairly excited about this space. I think it is a great working spaced and it will be just perfect over the next 6 1/2 months!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The view from the living room to Scrap Central.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_NSk2YwscTOHpBhJvmuVBGnP5cglHtdjJdE2O8ZqBayWFL2k6L-63QFytlgzVOVHJ3r91BpV0dRVOwHgaoFDC0HfsuJhSIw_D0Jzh8pJ7n1V8AbNK9oOMuLI_G3amkb2WlF2GcWZya0ev/s1600/IMG_6896.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_NSk2YwscTOHpBhJvmuVBGnP5cglHtdjJdE2O8ZqBayWFL2k6L-63QFytlgzVOVHJ3r91BpV0dRVOwHgaoFDC0HfsuJhSIw_D0Jzh8pJ7n1V8AbNK9oOMuLI_G3amkb2WlF2GcWZya0ev/s640/IMG_6896.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Hemnes+Expedit Duo in its glory</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">6 Stamp 'n Storage paper cubes in the center are the foundational grid, </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">and hold all of my Bazzill card stock.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Cropper Hopper paper holders on the left and right handle my patterned paper.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Binders at top left and right hold stamps.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Binders on bottom right hold sticker sheets from collections.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Class binders and idea books and small alphas are also on the bottom row.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir7kgyVAEW2L3Lmii5ghBXY5zUlu-c66onrkNBjaUmSF5cLICLp0L48bMZYyAGJzvjBSmsDSYeKhi0VF8OgQ91xLPDK6Mc362kI6RfgcIQtDQ22lI61QSRMynd9iAHKslsJaCUd61GNEcW/s1600/IMG_6895.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir7kgyVAEW2L3Lmii5ghBXY5zUlu-c66onrkNBjaUmSF5cLICLp0L48bMZYyAGJzvjBSmsDSYeKhi0VF8OgQ91xLPDK6Mc362kI6RfgcIQtDQ22lI61QSRMynd9iAHKslsJaCUd61GNEcW/s640/IMG_6895.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A broader angle - showing my Michael's project cart and how it all bumps up against a 2x4 Expedit.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tQyS8j8M6DIFz_0bSOt1DaKE3oSfsS9onX44VzxeoZWlAq2LjCahcWdR3yn-xZWnDKtY5DtlB0DdCnElieyJvoidXwGESq-ZH_sEqIHHynhes52xsg8oYTz2xTWU-58rPwjMjToUMQ2q/s1600/IMG_6897.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tQyS8j8M6DIFz_0bSOt1DaKE3oSfsS9onX44VzxeoZWlAq2LjCahcWdR3yn-xZWnDKtY5DtlB0DdCnElieyJvoidXwGESq-ZH_sEqIHHynhes52xsg8oYTz2xTWU-58rPwjMjToUMQ2q/s640/IMG_6897.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The view from the side.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I grabbed a Kensington keyboard drawer for my iMac to extend my keyboard and trackpad out for better ergonomics.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP6MDgrNPOL7F1D14nl0Y5R6M7XAYT52ExQ_YKPTT0kUUGbQYdQoYOiwlqG7tEUB2N0Vw7cOUWcDAg_HaN_MJ8rWD8Z7JIv4V38Ns8ecDSacLyZ52drjAqsv2HGrZ_JHYaTxwG2przouEU/s1600/IMG_6898.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP6MDgrNPOL7F1D14nl0Y5R6M7XAYT52ExQ_YKPTT0kUUGbQYdQoYOiwlqG7tEUB2N0Vw7cOUWcDAg_HaN_MJ8rWD8Z7JIv4V38Ns8ecDSacLyZ52drjAqsv2HGrZ_JHYaTxwG2przouEU/s640/IMG_6898.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A broader side angle, picking up the Alex drawer which now doubles as a trimmer home.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A feel for how Scrap Central plays into the living area of the apartment.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Yes - I will be able to "watch" football with the hubs <i>while scrapping</i>!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">One more angle of my Scrap Central Clubhouse creating space.</span></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br style="background-color: white;" /><span style="background-color: white;">I am really ready to craft here! The apartment is very nearly completely settled, save my winter clothes, but who needs winter clothes anyway! ;-) The "coat closet" is another key to my success here. I *wish* all of my scrap stuff would fit into this space shown above, but, alas, I have a *few* more things. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">The coat closet is large enough to actually hold two more Expedits - a 2x4 on the right side and a 2x2 on the left, that has just a few Iris cases stacked on top. I snapped some photos of the closet. Forgive the lowlight. The apartment seems to have bad lightbulbs everywhere and I need to work on that. I am going to just load the photos I shot of the closet and let you figure it out. ;-) It does need a little more organization, but it is all in there for now, and I know where what I need is when I need it. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyiOq4rxsBKUViM3adhLOQMeU-iC_k3VHajUd0ZE7cuP91B6wYOMQKRw0XOl1urIIdDHMvqncqY85yJe67ceNVFDPoimgLCyjgEmUvbTsivvOhlUbB-mb7kOD91PeE_nR02IX4pB7NT65P/s1600/IMG_6905.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyiOq4rxsBKUViM3adhLOQMeU-iC_k3VHajUd0ZE7cuP91B6wYOMQKRw0XOl1urIIdDHMvqncqY85yJe67ceNVFDPoimgLCyjgEmUvbTsivvOhlUbB-mb7kOD91PeE_nR02IX4pB7NT65P/s640/IMG_6905.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">And if you can swing the Ikea Hemnes dresser go for it! Very durable and its solid wood. And it holds a ton! I went with the white stained one and it seems like a great pairing so far! Ith holds so much that I did snap some quick photos of the drawer contents! I think you just might be amazed at how much it holds. And the main thing is that an Iris case CAN fit inside it if you want. Key for me in the long term. Right now, though, Hemnes is mainly handling embellishments that formerly lived in my antique hardware cabinet, and some things that lived in my built-in cabinets (small paper pads and embossing and stamping stuff....)</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">These photos are left to right order, starting at the top row of 4 smaller drawers, and working down to the two deepest drawers on the bottom:</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMIvbxGXnMRZ15O3UB1Whd0TFBwXbpLyfJEiJ3NwnCto0uk931zI51ibBOKIAdMHJ1i3Yxaj5DOIuh69h6OKUQHDPSwC92TnWIeV_-mVmbhy6CCCEXwXM5uxmBVXY8JUNkSFPyHm1El9q3/s1600/IMG_6910.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMIvbxGXnMRZ15O3UB1Whd0TFBwXbpLyfJEiJ3NwnCto0uk931zI51ibBOKIAdMHJ1i3Yxaj5DOIuh69h6OKUQHDPSwC92TnWIeV_-mVmbhy6CCCEXwXM5uxmBVXY8JUNkSFPyHm1El9q3/s640/IMG_6910.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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Solid <span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Brads.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjejgPTvv6jKxi8x525Ru39Z73DselcaP2fc_z_eBCAvgGXud0SBcphkEc-mnTt4N172vBeAP1YkbqjRIQDB1POeCt90eH13NqDX9EiO6splxlvSgKPelet83MApChAX-cpFK9pqTzkOIf1/s1600/IMG_6908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjejgPTvv6jKxi8x525Ru39Z73DselcaP2fc_z_eBCAvgGXud0SBcphkEc-mnTt4N172vBeAP1YkbqjRIQDB1POeCt90eH13NqDX9EiO6splxlvSgKPelet83MApChAX-cpFK9pqTzkOIf1/s640/IMG_6908.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Buttons and extra adhesive.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFDXrneDSqTp1xjvXWL9588ZtVI7-8DzpYIIOg844KoZDKZXsyNVVTROM7gRtzwy_fCvg0FXMwi_lj_L6ZHHB3NSmLXQH-7fPZFevOa-DzX7j3z6I5kZ4eDeXTuV7fzV5F4uJotViJ_Rw/s1600/IMG_6909.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFDXrneDSqTp1xjvXWL9588ZtVI7-8DzpYIIOg844KoZDKZXsyNVVTROM7gRtzwy_fCvg0FXMwi_lj_L6ZHHB3NSmLXQH-7fPZFevOa-DzX7j3z6I5kZ4eDeXTuV7fzV5F4uJotViJ_Rw/s640/IMG_6909.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Washi tape that lives on top of the buttons.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtmqP1M_LRN7AvrgJcurqSl3zhCIB__7GCfrd6eeJ8goTt-TCm0GsOneMylRkMzd23u_64kIjPd2oJ52Q1Y7Ws96Y9KW70t_WCFkffP7muvgs0GUQrJbkvpyulQ03jS3JPJaRd91gyTLXS/s1600/IMG_6907.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtmqP1M_LRN7AvrgJcurqSl3zhCIB__7GCfrd6eeJ8goTt-TCm0GsOneMylRkMzd23u_64kIjPd2oJ52Q1Y7Ws96Y9KW70t_WCFkffP7muvgs0GUQrJbkvpyulQ03jS3JPJaRd91gyTLXS/s640/IMG_6907.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Kraft embellishments and my label maker.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">{See the glimpse of the fun gray stripe pattern on the drawer bottoms?!}</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfj40kfs6Ri3K8qNwBOkflA5J4ac7gDXPEB87CLn1HjqtmOOrRiUjYw9pT1-5LE1wOmtCRARF49OPQ2L3hmjWRnBXfH9j1ddz2Uwn97MA-DGi_yVwDuu2WbtGt3o5dUSJbALIxYmojC6wJ/s1600/IMG_6906.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfj40kfs6Ri3K8qNwBOkflA5J4ac7gDXPEB87CLn1HjqtmOOrRiUjYw9pT1-5LE1wOmtCRARF49OPQ2L3hmjWRnBXfH9j1ddz2Uwn97MA-DGi_yVwDuu2WbtGt3o5dUSJbALIxYmojC6wJ/s640/IMG_6906.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Designer Brads and some errant Punches.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOixhxur4WutdoCEjQxaZm-BwKCAVn_odoqz4-ktHuXgMSbN2ZdSSp82KsPylLBTiZf7O_9m-NId1Q63DFGcg5MT3OSJDg8X_ZEpD2BYu8UA67OEe0Mzi-yQN1YcuiUElMa-U_MMRe1y4O/s1600/IMG_6911.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOixhxur4WutdoCEjQxaZm-BwKCAVn_odoqz4-ktHuXgMSbN2ZdSSp82KsPylLBTiZf7O_9m-NId1Q63DFGcg5MT3OSJDg8X_ZEpD2BYu8UA67OEe0Mzi-yQN1YcuiUElMa-U_MMRe1y4O/s640/IMG_6911.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Inks and stamp supplies and pens.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEne6OMXoW8kpR7-Dqe7JhMctb_PrTNRGsNoU0qtH75IqbwOWPMRt2wBIjr6myCv2-kFD39nZs58gNFe2UNk-3ucUzFtfSsTe-Tlj7P1mH5AY2YX_fpxqkVqEN2OKxTfkQ8c2RX4H4LsEO/s1600/IMG_6913.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEne6OMXoW8kpR7-Dqe7JhMctb_PrTNRGsNoU0qtH75IqbwOWPMRt2wBIjr6myCv2-kFD39nZs58gNFe2UNk-3ucUzFtfSsTe-Tlj7P1mH5AY2YX_fpxqkVqEN2OKxTfkQ8c2RX4H4LsEO/s640/IMG_6913.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Journaling cards, embossing supplies, chipboard, my Evolution.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZF9zCtqMEw-7vCk9sI00_nkc3KCxVrsFQVsKoBSd9SHO1HtIRhOpUz4Mv_Mor2LhAeGMcg046snvgkfd6mx7H8lEa0g9oG31f0yK8Hb59G5Kveoc7eJ_QewmkPrzMui1jffijtevidERR/s1600/IMG_6912.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZF9zCtqMEw-7vCk9sI00_nkc3KCxVrsFQVsKoBSd9SHO1HtIRhOpUz4Mv_Mor2LhAeGMcg046snvgkfd6mx7H8lEa0g9oG31f0yK8Hb59G5Kveoc7eJ_QewmkPrzMui1jffijtevidERR/s640/IMG_6912.jpg" width="640" /></a><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">6x6 and 8x8 pads and twine and some roller date stamps.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Various embellishments stored loosely in Ziploc bags.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">These are those things you don't use often, but don't want to let go! </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Thanks for hanging with me this long! It has been a busy time to be sure getting all of this settled in. But, hopefully scrapbooking interrupted time is done and I can be cranking out the layouts here in Scrap Central Clubhouse soon!</span></div>
penny{scraps}http://www.blogger.com/profile/17244541391573655447noreply@blogger.com6