Kelly in NC

Iknow. I know. 2 scrapbook pages in one weekend? That is thanks to Pop Pop for inviting Grayson to visit the local drag strip celebration this weekend. That gave me the entire afternoon to clean my house, update my blog layout, and scrapbook. This page is from the baby shower we had for Jill last weekend.

It was created using the free Promise Kit from Shabby Princess. I also cannot take credit for the layout. I mimiced the layout that I saw here byGayle Smith

Grayson seems to enjoy his new classroom. His teacher, Ms. Wendy is incredibly nice and keeps the kids very busy. He has been absolutely exhausted every night once he comes home, falling asleep within minutes of being put to bed. I think that he was ready for the change in classrooms for quite some time and I am glad to see him adjusting so well.

Here’s the scrapbook page I created from his Daycare Graduation:

I’ve finished reading all of my “open” books and have gotten my scrapbooking motivation back. Here’s my latest page of Grayson and Ella’s 2nd Birthday. It was a farm theme- as you can probably tell by looking at the pictures!

Also, I have received a few requests on posting my scrapbook pages so that when you click on the image, you could see a zoomed in version of the page. I have yet to figure out how to do that. Any one have any suggestions?
Ah ha! I figured it out. Kind of. Click on the scrapbook page and it will take you to a larger version. You can click on the magnifying (sp?) at the top right of the photo to zoom in. happy?

This past weekend was packed full!
~On Thursday afternoon- we attended Grayson’s Graduation into the 2 year classroom. It was funny watching all of the toddlers march into the room, run for thier parents, and then of course not pay attention to anything. I am thankful that his teachers took the time to prepare the little cerem0ny. I may have teared up a time or two reflecting on how much he has grown. Tim’s parents were able to attend the graduation too! The highlight for Grayson was the little school bus they gave him as a present.
~Also on Thursday, Tim’s brother Joe and his family flew in from Florida. We haven’t seen my nephew Adler since March- so we couldn’t wait for them to arrive. Adler is a wonderful baby- quiet and mild tempered. We were sad to see them leave on Sunday and Grayson is still asking “A Agler doe?” or “Joe-Joe” or “an Amy”.
~On Friday night, we invited all of the family over to our house for BBQ. Tim’s aunts, grandparents, and cousins were in town from Ohio for Jill’s Baby shower on Saturday. Our house was filled to the max with fun, food, and laughter. We loved having everyone in town.
~Saturday was Jill’s shower. Mom B planned most of it, with me in charge of decorations and some of the hosting responsibilities. ONly a few more weeks before little Krugie is due to arrive. I can’t wait to meet my new neice or nephew!
~Here are the photos from this weekend. Click here to view them.
~I finally finished another scrapbooking page. This one is for Grayson’s scrapbook. I use my monthly letters to create an album for him. So here is the one for 24 months:

These pages were created using the free kit “Lazy Summer” by Whimpy Chomper Creations

I saw this on a blog somewhere while searching for scrapbooking freebies. Wish I remembered where I saw it- as I’d give that person a shout out…but since I can’t remember- Oh well.

This Week:
Highs: There are a few. 1) This was the best 1st week of school that I have ever experienced. Perhaps it is because my school hired a third Guidance Counselor to help reduce my case load- maybe it’s because the grade level of kids who gave me headaches for the past 5 years- are finally NOT my responsibility anymore. Who knows…and to be honest who cares! Whatever the reason- I am very pleased with this school year already. 2) Sometimes I take my husband and Grayson for granted. This weekend I was reminded just how lucky I am to have them in my life. I love when something happens to remind me to count my blessings! 3) It was tax free weekend which = shopping!!!
Lows: Just one. I discoverd some rather upsetting news on Saturday. I would rather not get into it right now- but I am sure that I will blog about it sometime soon. The positive side of this low was my #2 above. See? There always is a silver lining!
Etc: I completed another scrapbook page this evening. Now that I am back at work it takes me an entire week to get a 2 page layout finished. Wish I had started scrapbooking a bit earlier this summer! Anyhow, the pages I finished are featured below. These are the pages created from our trip to the NC Zoo in April.

Papers/Embelishments- Simply Sweet Designs Just Dirt Kit.
Layout Template: Lisa Minor

Now that I am back at work, there just does not seem to be enough time in the day. Between all of my normal daily-around the house chores and now all of the begining of the school year requirements, I am left wishing for a few more hours to get it all completed. I am exhausted by the time I come home in the evenings and have no desire to clean the toilets or put away dishes. I am hoping that maybe I can catch up on all my “house” stuff this weekend.
I did get the chance to scrapbook another layout this weekend. These pages are from the weekend of May 10. Tim was out of town for a bachelor party and when a couple of my friends, Becky & Kelly, came in town- it just seemed natural to declare a Girl’s Night. We went to uptown Charlotte and danced the night away at the Breakfast Club- an 80’s theme disco. It was so much fun. Anyhow- here are the pages from that night:

Also, for those who wish to see all the photos that I took of Grayson for his 27 Month post- check them out by clicking here!

I realized today as I was scrapbooking my trip to Punta Cana that I never really gave any details about the trip. I wrote a bit about leaving Grayson, but almost nothing about the trip itself. Well for starters- you should probably read my review on Trip Advisor (click here). That pretty well sums up the resort.
Now for the real details. Tim and I had a great time. The weather was amazing for the most part. It only rained one evening- of course right in the middle of our horse back riding tour- and I mean a down-pour! Which was kind of fun- except that I ruined both my digital camera and my brand new HD video camera. I absolutely wanted to cry. Luckily I had an underwater camera with us on the trip-so I did get a few more photos with it. The quality of those photos did leave something to be desired though. Anyhow, the beach was the best part of the resort. We would sit under a tiki hut in our lounge chairs for hours, enjoying the breeze and doing exactly what we went there to do- RELAX! Then in the afternoons we would head to the pools. We received a couples massage on one day which included a treatment in the spa. The only other event worth mentioning would be the Double Cuervo Margaritas Tim enjoyed on our second day at the resort. When they finally hit him- they hit him hard. He ended up using our inroom jacuzzi tub when the Cuervo made a reappearance and then slept for 4.5 hours. Whew! I guess it’s hard to have self control when the drinks are already paid for! Anyhow, here are the pages I created from our trip:

So it just dawned on me 5 days ago that my summer was already nearing an end. I am not sure where the time flew so quickly, but for me- school will begin again on Tuesday. *Sigh.* Of course when I get my break in October- I won’t be as sad that I went back so much earlier than the rest of my teaching friends.
Anyhow, I wish that I had caught the scrapbooking bug at the begining of my break. If I had, then I would probably be up to date on my albums. Oh well. So without further procrastination…here’s the newest page:
The Family BBQ from May. When 7 family members from Ohio all came down to NC (for different reasons) it just seemed natural for Tim’s parents to host a get-together…and not just any get-together. This one was extra special because they made “Greasy Bread”- a hungarian apetizer! Yumm!!!

This page was created using a free template from DIP Diva’s and a free paper/embellishment kit from Shabby Princess.

On May 17, we helped celebrate Leah’s 3rd birthday by joining in on her luau. Here’s today’s scrapbook page with those photos. Whew, I’m on a roll!

Page created using the same paper, embellishments, templates I purchased yesterday.

Back in June, I posted photos from the weekend when my neighbor’s were away and gave us access to their pool. Here are the scrapbook pages I created from that weekend.

I finally broke down and “purchased” scrapbooking paper, templates, and supplies. These pages were created using materials I purchased from Scrapbook-Elements.com. I figured the $6 I spent was worth the hours I spent on the other pages looking for freebies.

Below are the pages I created for Memorial Day weekend. Tim was awesome and planned the entire weekend away at Wilson Creek, NC.

These pages were created using free paper and embellishments from Tempus Fugit. I used a free template from Simply Sweet Designs for pg1 and a free template from Trish Designs for pg 2.

Yes, I am going back in time. With the blur of the past month, there have been a number of events that I just couldn’t find the time to blog about. Luckily for you, I am back into scrapbooking and I just finished my layouts for my friend Carri’s Bachelorette Party. Yes, it was back in June. Sorry for the delay- but this summer really has been pure caos.

Anyhow, on June 21, I helped celebrate Carri’s final days of “singlehood” with a trip down to Jacksonville Beach. Her sister Becky did a great job of organizing the entire weekend -from the hotel right on the beach to the custom CD she made for all the guests. My favortie part of the entire weekend was when “Jerry Clueless” surprised Carri at dinner with a singing telegram and magic show. I had been threatening a stripper for months- so while Carri was definitley surprised, I think she was also releaved that I didn’t get her back for the slimey exotic dancer she hired for my “last night out”. Anyhow, here are the pages I created commemorating her Bachelorette party. I created them using a free template from SimplySweetDesigns and using free embellishments and free paper from Kawouette Designs.

You can check out all the photos from that weekend by clicking here.

This past weekend, I was honored to take part in my best friend’s, Carri, wedding. I can’t explain how excited I was to be a part of her day. See Carri has been my best friend since my sophomore year of college. We were/are alike in so many ways and once we bonded over a roommate from hell- we were inseperable. Well, maybe not literally. In the twelve years since we’ve been friends, we have only lived near each other for 6 of them. But the distance between our homes didn’t keep our friendship from growing. When she finally moved to NC two and half years ago, I secretly hoped that I would be able to convince her to stay forever. Little did I know that she would meet Dave and that my hopes would come true.

So congratulations Carri and Dave on your wedding. I am so glad that you found each other. And Dave, now it looks as if I owe you for keeping Carri here in NC. I couldn’t pick out a better match for my best friend. You are considerate and thoughful and you make her happier that I have ever seen her. I look forward to raising our families together and all the memories we will create. Congratulations and thank you for making me a part of your special day!

Here are the scrapbook pages a created from the photos from the wedding:

These pages were created using a Freebie from Digital Gator.
You can check all the photos from the weekend by clicking here.

Well the photos I took on July 4th plus the post by Daverhi, inspired me to start scrapbooking again. If you happen to check out Rhi’s site, make sure you click on her home page. She has really gotten busy in the last few days! So thanks for the inspiration!
Anyhow, I am still trying to tackle digital scrapbooking. It is getting easier the more I play around with it. These pages were created using the freebies from JenLin Designs. Maybe now I will go back and scrapbook the other hundreds of photos I have taken this year!

My latest digital scrapbook page:

These pages were created using the following products:
Papers, Flower Embellishemnts, 31: http://freedigitalscrapbooking.com/index.html
Font: Footlight MT Light
Editing Program: Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006

This year I decided to choose a New Year’s Resolution that shouldn’t be too difficult for me to keep up with- after all it is about something that I love to do: Scrapbooking!
So in, 2008, I resolve to keep up todate with this year’s scrapbook!
A challenge I know! To be honest, in the past I had no problem keeping up with a yearly scrapbook. However since the birth of Grayson and the building of our house- I have gotten pretty far behind. So I have decided that rather than trying to get those caught up (which I will do if I have EXTRA time), I will instead focus on the photos that I take this year. I have noticed that since I have stopped scrapbooking, I have started taking less and less photos. So hopefully by making this year’s book a goal, I will also start taking lots of photos again. (And by lots of photos, I mean more than just those of Grayson-which I photograph ALOT!).
Anyhow, to start off this year’s goal I have already made my first pages. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have been considering going to digital scrapbooking. It was bit overwhelming at first and I still have alot to learn, but I did it! I created my first two digital pages:

This page was create using:
Embellishments: “Dazzling Evening” by Newlife
Papers: WInter Formals 1 Sampler by Kim Smith Design
2008 Font: Liquid Silver by Atomic Cupcake
All other Font and editing software: Microsoft Digital Imaging Suite 2006.