REALIZATIONS

With only 2 days until the contractor FINALLY starts on the extra support for this old house and the rooms upstairs, I've come to realize that it is also only 2 (TWO) days until December 1st. With that, I sit and ponder if the advent calendar might be downstairs or is it out in the shed. Then the next realization, my daughter, who started having massive belly issues the summer of 2014, was taken off eggs, soy, all dairy, gluten, legumes, and green beans just to name a few this past spring -- WHAT am I going to put in the advent calendar???  I've come to realize also she does best with very limited sugar and with no grains in the evening.  Normally I can think of things further in advance, but with the house being in the shape it is, and life as it has been, I seem to only be able to comprehend the next task at hand.  If I had been thinking, I would have had hubs look at the food store by where he works last week for certain advent items. Before I could stuff the box with notes about we're making a treat or putting up a decoration.  We haven't tested a large variety of cookies or candies, but have some. There are a few decent ones, but none that are what we're use to quality.  As for decorations, we've decided that we're not  doing anything until the contractor is done. 2-3 weeks. We'll be lucky to get the tree up, quite honestly. And we usually put it up the first weekend after Thanksgiving.  On a positive note, for my immediate family, I'm almost completely finished with holiday shopping. Sonshine still needs a few things, but I know what I'm buying. Just waiting for those credit card reward gift certificates to get here. Love reward points! Especially love almost being done. Now to really clean the bathroom since the workers will be using it and the path to the bathroom. With the upstairs and the downstairs having to remain basically clear, the stuff has to go somewhere and the new shed only holds so much. Hopefully we're only talking 2 weeks to completion, but realistically, I just hope the kids have bedrooms by Christmas!  Realizing we might be up a creek without a paddle here.

On a scrappy note, I  sent out my annual calendar swap for this year earlier this week. I wasn't as happy with it as in years past, it's just so simple. I really wanted to make a shaker preserve jar embellishment. But it is what it is.

Scrap Our Stash Sketch Challenge 31

This past October as I was gleaning ideas from multiple sources for the 2peasrefugee crop, I ran across the Scrap Our Stash site.  Now I'm a hoarder by nature, so anything where my stash gets used grabs hold of my attention pretty darn quickly. This was the only site that I bookmarked to go back to which also says something.

So with my hubs, who was off for hunting last week but ended up sick and in my face instead, now back to work, I finally had some time to play with their current challenge. It's Sketch Challenge 31. I chose to flip the sketch. I also used the "I" column in BINGO: paper clip (swirl at the top of the photo which have been in my stash for years), doily, glitter (washi and alphas), journal card (which I cut down and rounded the corners of the 'focus on the happy' card in the lower right hand corner), and metal (in addition to the paper clip, a heart brad and a making memories metal and rhinestone word "LOVE" all being very old stash items). Does anyone else get giddy when they use old items on the page??

The photo color isn't quite true and seems a bit blurry to me. It's not IRL. or maybe I should put on my glasses. ha. Also used: the newer Shimelle True Stories collection which was love at first sight for me; wood veneer hearts, sequins, some homemade hearts made from colored modeling paste, and a old large foam heart used for stringing practice when the kids were small, I just cut the top off so it wasn't as bulky. Re-purposing items also makes me a bit giddy. 

I knew I was going to use the Shimelle collection and that journaling card on this layout. If not for this sketch challenge, I would have stuck to the normal band or L design with regular rectangle layers and a full sized journaling card. I have to say I'm thrilled that I didn't, I love how this turned out! 

A Few Favorites

Over at the 2peasrefugees proboards group, we just had a crop.  I was reminded again how truly wonderful Peas can be. Many volunteered to host challenges or to give prizes.  I think everyone who had the time to participate had fun. For me personally, it was a long overdue time to be creative. The whole month of October was very limited on creative time. Thankfully, I was teaching art journaling and scrapbooking at our homeschool co-op, so I did have some creative time for that. But with prepping for the contractor to come in  (ehem, still waiting - he says he'll be here next week) and with putting away the wood for winter, because yeah, we waited until the last minute to order 9 cords of wood.

Anywho, I really wanted to put up a few of my favorite layouts from the crop. I finished 12 layouts in total! Woo Hoo!

This was from the triangle challenge and uses the Shimelle True Stories collection. Unfortunately, I could not find the pedal to my old sewing machine that I use on paper. So I hand treadled the needle to make stitching holes on each triangle. I really wanted it threaded and almost (ALMOST)  hand stitched them.  But then I remembered something very important -- I'm lazy!

 This was a sketch challenge. AND I LOVE how it turned out. My journaling is the little pocket.

 This  is a die cut challenge and was hosted by Ashley Calder at Things That Shine Etsy. She donated 6, SIX, die cut files including this fabulous one - the Nordic Star Sweater Full. I cut the file and then individually pieced each one with my Scotch Quick Dry in my fine line applicator using the large piece to ensure all the little pieces were placed properly. 3 hours, but totally worth it!  The photo mat is on pop dots so that it is about the same level as the paper straw border around it.

 The art journaling challenge hosted by Patter. I also chose to use it to complete one of the GloryArt Journaling challenges she hosts on her blog.  I've been reading them in my down time at homeschool co-op each week and taking notes, but this is the first time I was able to be creative with them.

 This was for the curvy element challenge. I LOVE it. It uses Amy Tan papers. I still have the journaling left to do. I think I'm going to gesso just to the right of the photo to give myself a toned down area to right and it be visible.  Roxy cannot just lay on the floor. She has to get blankets, hers, ours, it doesn't  matter, and then paw them and paw them maneuvering them until they are just so, before turning in a circle and laying her butt down. It's so funny to watch her.

My favorites from two weeks ago. This week I'm working on my yearly calendar swap. I'm itching to do a layout though. So hopefully, I'll finish it tomorrow and be able to do layouts over the weekend.  Wish me luck!