Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  Pretty sure most everyone is all done with the celebrating, but you know me always running just a bit behind.  This time last year, I was just back from a great girl's weekend with two of my favorite ladies in Chicago.  It was a seriously fun trip and I managed to document it all.  Chicago has to be one of the best places to celebrate St. Patty's Day - no?!?!  All of our antics are now forever preserved for our kids and grandkids.....uh, oh!!!  It was really not bad at all, but we did have a great time and I finally managed to photograph the entire album that I completed almost a month ago.  I thought today would be a fitting day to get it posted.  I hope you enjoy!  My photography skills - especially where capturing my layouts is concerned, has definitely not improved, but you do get the added bonus of a couple of feline photo bombs....you can thank me later.

Click here to view these pictures larger

More Chicago Layouts

As far as scrapping goes, I had a pretty productive weekend.  I completed four double page layouts...all on Sunday.  Other than a couple of finishing touches on a few pages, I only have two pages to complete.  I am pretty excited as my goal for the year is to complete four albums, or one every three months.  I am very aware that the potential move in the next couple of months is likely to throw me off track, so being a bit ahead of schedule feels really good!

The day before we were heading home from this trip - which happened to be St. Patrick's Day, we decided to do a "bar crawl".  Once I was done feeling yucky from the heat - bar three to be exact - I was ready to join in on the fun.  We had a great time and with the exception of a couple of questionable drink choices  it was a day/evening to remember!  I think that I have enjoyed doing these pages the most, but the whole book  has had me reliving the trip and bringing back such great memories and isn't that what scrapbooking is all about?

I had these all cropped and up close like the first one, but apparently Photobucket had other ideas....sorry!  I really am trying to do better with the layout pics.  I probably won't be posting WOYWW tomorrow....the desk is pretty boring right now since everything was packed from my crop day at my friend's Sunday, but we will see.  Hopefully the next time you see Chicago layouts, it will be the book in it's entirety!  I did not mat near as many pictures as I normally do in this book.  For you scrappers out there.....do you mat the photos in your layouts or not?  Inquiring minds want to know.  The pictures for my next book - 245 to be exact, are sorted and the paper pad that I have been dying to work with, K& Company Que Sera Sera is purchased - bring it on!  Hope you are having a great week!

Scrapbook Layouts - Chicago 2012

In the spirit of keeping it real, I have to tell you guys that I am a bit nervous about posting these layouts.  In a nutshell, I am a pretty simple scrapper.  There tends to be a lot of pictures - super light on the embellishments.  Is this ok.....well, I always thought so.  I do believe that everyone has their own style and in my heart I know that is 100% true.  But over the last few months since I have really started getting excited about starting Project Life, I have started following some incredible blogs.  Some of the women are on design teams, some not, but their layouts absolutely BLOW. ME. AWAY. In all honesty, I am even a bit intimidated about Project Life, but I ordered my Olive Edition kit today...finally, and I am going to do my best to rock it like nobody's business - Katie, thank you for ALL of the inspiration!!!!

Before some of you go freaking out on me, I am totally proud of the scrapping that I do.  Trust me, if my apartment ever caught on fire, there is a four way tie for what I would grab first - kid (although he is big enough to help me grab things), cats, pictures and scrapbooks!

In addition to my minimalist approach to scrapping, photographing said scrapping falls dismally short.  I need serious help in this area.  Any helpful advice that you guys can send my way would be greatly appreciated.  I have a good point and shoot as well as a pretty great camera on my Android, but that is it.  I long for a fancy DSLR, but right now, it just isn't in the cards.

Maybe more than anything , I am worried about the presentation.  Although, for the most part I feel that I very much blog for myself when it comes to sharing things like scrapbook layouts or really anything crafty - presentation is a huge part of it....no???

Aside from this slightly whiny post....sorry about that.....I am having a blast with this scrapbook.  I am documenting a girl's weekend trip to Chicago last year with two of my dear friends, Megan and Jennifer.  Each layout that I do, brings back great memories of the trip.  This is the first trip scrapbook that I have done for myself and I am doing my best to do journaling on every page so that when I am 80 and my memory is shot I will have something to refer to...lol.  Journaling is not one of my strong suits!

Billy Goat Tavern

Sprinkles and The Hard Rock Cafe

Navy Pier

Sky Deck @ Willis Tower

I would love to know what you think....the good, the bad and the ugly.  I am open to CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, but if you can't say it in a nice way, I would prefer that you didn't say it at all.  Your mother did you teach you that....right?

Busiest Vacation EVER

This hands down, may just be the busiest vacation that I have ever had.  I have truly not even been able to catch my breath.  As I mentioned in the previous post.....I pretty much scrapbooked the entire weekend.  I finally finished Monday night - well I guess it was actually Tuesday morning, at 6:30 AM.  That was after we went to the Mythbusters Live show.  It was a lot of fun and we were on the 3rd row!!!!  Tuesday afternoon, I delivered the scrapbook - luckily I had a very happy customer and that always makes it worth while.  He emailed me this morning and said his wife is going to want one for their other son  - GO ME!!!  After that little adventure, we headed to the T-mobile store and I FINALLY put my big girl panties on and went android....if you call me and I hang up on you or you get a text resembling hyroglyphics, please don't take it personally.  I have been assured by more than one person that it will get better...I can only hope.  Zachary and I managed to put together an IKEA desk last night in just over 2 hours with next to no drama - I never would have thought...lol.  Furniture assembly has never been my strong suit.  Today, a friend and I rearranged about 75% of my apartment.   Before today, I didn't really know how much longer I was going to be able to stand it here, but I am amazed - it is truly a brand new place.  We even made the dining room very scrapping friendly with room for future storage.  Oh, and forgot the most important part - Zach and I can actually eat at the table absent of any scrapping supplies.  It is not as visually pleasing as I would like it, but it is just what I needed. 

So, Wednesday is coming to a close.  Clean sheets are in the dryer and I am packing my suitcase.  My flight leaves for Chicago in about 9 hours and other than being truly exhausted....I am so excited that I can hardly stand it!!!!  Two of my girlfriend's and I are going to celebrate  St. Paddy's Day in style in the Windy City.  Megan is flying with me in the morning, and Jennifer is meeting us from Orlando.  This is the first time any of us have been, so we are all pretty pumped.  I will obviously be absent until the first part of next week - that is why I am blogging now instead of finishing up my packing, but check back next week for a recap and I hope a lot of fun pictures.  All three of us are all about the pictures so there will probably be hundreds all together...and you think I'm kidding.

Just a reminder, if you haven't signed up for my giveaway please give Shannon over at Life After I Dew a visit and sign yourself up - she so graciously offered to host.  There will be two winners, and it is good stuff people!  Tested and approved by me.  That is it from here folks, got to squeeze in a few hours of sleep.  Make note, this will be only the second time in my blog's history that there has been a post with no photos - the first being my very first post EVER.  Me no likey, but I will make up for it....promise.  Have a great weekend...Happy St. Patrick's Day...Luck O' the Irish...and all that other crazy green stuff!

Randomness: Rants & A Couple of Great Raves

Before really getting into this post, I am going to apologize.  As I mentioned in my last post, I am having a really hard time lately focusing on any one subject in particular (adult onset ADD perhaps?).  Which in turn has led me not to post because I can't organize everything that is swimming around in my head into one topic.  But never fear, I have decided to just let it all (or at least a good bit of it) out in one post.  I will however, do my best to at least use paragraphs to separate my thoughts so it willl hopefully be a bit easier to follow along.

For those of you that don't know, I live in North TX.  We are having unseasonably warm weather and for the record, I don't like it one bit.  With temperatures in the 60s, 70s and almost 80s a day or two, it is not boding well for what we are going to get this summer.  For those of you that live in places where temperatures are in the 20s, 30s and maybe lower, you are probably thinking "stop your belly aching".  But trust me when I say that I would trade places with you in a heartbeat!  Winter is supposed to be frigid temperatures, snow, bundling up, fires in the fireplaces.....NOT flip flops and shorts.  People, it is just ridiculous!  Here ends my mini rant on the TX "winter" weather.

I am not a fan of AT&T.  Please understand - it has nothing to do with the actual service and everything to do with the CUSTOMER SERVICE (or lack thereof).  I have had them for high speed DSL for over a year and I would say out of that time, my bill may have been correct about 6 times.  The CSRs that I would deal with were generally nice and seemingly sympathetic to my issues, but after assuring me that next month everything would be correct, I would once again receive a crazy bill the next month.  There was rarely any documentation on the conversation that took place the month before.  Last week, I had had enough....after being transferred to six - yes six, different people all of whom I had to retell my entire story to as well as all of my pertinent information...I cancelled them and their jacked up nonsense.  Although we have been making do with limited internet since then, I truly feel like a weight has been lifted.  Silly I know, but true none the less.  This has been much more difficult for my son than it has been for me, but hopefully, barring any unforeseen circumstances we will be up and running sometime on Saturday!

Zachary is playing indoor soccer this season.  As a mom I can in all honesty say that he has drastically improved since he started playing a couple of years ago.  Unfortunately, his team is really struggling.  Only four of them have ever played together.  Trust me, it is not for lack of trying that they aren't winning.  They are genuinely giving it everything they have, but sadly falling a little short.  The games so far have been really close and I am just crossing my fingers that things will turn around.

I mentioned last week that I was working on a huge scrapbook - well, I am also concurrently working on a smaller , but much more difficult scrapbook.  Difficult because there are very few pictures and an abundance of Kindergarten artwork and school papers.  I have never done a scrapbook like this before and am frequently wondering if I will be happy with it once I figure out what exactly to do with it.  I gave myself a deadline last week, so the pressure is definitely on.  I think it will make my long weekend away much more enjoyable if I do not have this scrapbook hanging over me.......

Which brings me to my little weekend away.  I have two dear girlfriends that I originally met through work.  Although we no longer work together, I have stayed in touch and close to both of them through the years.  I am the lone single old lady of the group, but I really love these ladies!  We had been throwing around a "Girls Weekend" for well over a year and finally the planets have all aligned! lol  Drumroll please......we are spending St. Patrick's Day weekend in CHICAGO!!!!!  None of us has ever been before and we are so looking forward to celebrating the SPD festivities in Chi-town!  Stay tuned for future posts!

Megan, Jennifer and I -Cabo San Lucas 2009.  The next day we celebrated Megan's wedding!

I am one of those strong believers that everything happens for a reason.  I don't know how to describe this expect to say that I have a guardian angel of sorts watching over me.....praying for me and VERY gently pushing in the direction that she knows (and I know as well, but for some reason am pushing back), that I need to go.  As I type this I pray that she does not give up on me.  She is an amazing, Godly woman and I am so blessed to have her in my life - I can never express to her how grateful I am for everything that she has done and continues to do in my life.

Penny and I celebrating my birthday

OK, how was that for ALL over the map???  Maybe next post I will be a little more focused, now that I have all that randomness off my chest.  Thanks for baring with me til the end and enjoy the rest of your work week!