Creating Gifts and Halloween Costume...

OK - well - I STILL have not completed my Fall Flip book - I am printing the pictures today so hopefully I will to get play this afternoon... we shall see?! However, last night while watching The Office and such, I made this super cute little Flip book for my daughters' best friend! Her birthday is today - and so we created a Birthday Flip book so they can take photo's and she can complete it on her own! So fun...

And here is a photo of Kaye and Kennedy in their 80s fashions for the school dance...

Kaye refused to let me do the side ponytail - which would have ROCKED... and her leg warmers were actually not staying up - but were too big?! Who knew you could get leg warmers that are too big?!

So - anyway - I LOVE these little flip books - so fast and fun... I am thinking I will be making some for Christmas gifts soon... however, today - I have real work to do (I do part time office help for a realtor friend) and I need to buy a few more Bunko Prizes for next week, and get those photo's printed, of course... not to mention my little one has no school today - so we're hoping to squeeze in something fun before she needs to show up in costume at the church to help out at the Harvest Party tonight! If I get that Fall book done..., I will simply edit this post - so check back in a day or so...

Scrap Happy!
~Karrilee~

Creating just for fun...

Wow... Who knew that #1 - you (my viewing public and stalking fans) were so amazingly supportive and awesome!? (Well - I knew of course!) and #2 - that I could unwind and have fun creating just for the sake of creating! No customer order to fulfill; no items to list or promote; no sale in the back of my mind... just creating and playing with fun Christmas papers from My Mind's Eye, and soem glitter embellishment powder, stamps and paints... nice!

So - with that said... here are a few of the things I actually had fun creating today...

Some personal Christmas Cards:

and I will give you a sneak peak at the Flip Book:

It will be WAY cuter when I put my photo's in it... but this will give you something to see until I get to that project! I promise this Flip Book is WAY easier than it looks... having the pictures in will make it easier to 'understand' too!

Oh - and here are some of the photo's that I hope to include in the book - just some gorgeous shots of my favorite Season - Fall!!! (In case somehow someone here didn't know that?!)

So - here is a shot of my sis' and I... We had a GREAT time in Walla Walla hanging with them! It was nice and relaxing and much needed for all included! Tomorrow I am off again on a day trip to hang out with a couple of friends... again - MUCH needed! I am hoping to create a few more of those Flip Books soon as well as working on more Christmas cards... but I feel no rush and the fact that I had FUN playing today with all my supplies is a huge encouragement to me! I also finished Book 1 in the Mitford Series and immediately started Book 2!? I am not sure if I will stick with it though - because Nicholas Sparks is still waiting for me too... not too mention a few others?! I mean - of COURSE I will stick with it- but I don't know if I can read just that one and make all the others wait?!

Thanks again for the support and reminders... Luckily, I rarely deal with stress and I think I needed to post and get it out there so I could read it and give myself a break! My daughter and one of her best friends are dressing up tomorrow as 80s Chicks... (they have their first Junior High Dance - a Halloween dance no less?!) So - we are breaking the rules and letting Kennedy spend the night tonight (a school night!?) so they can get ready together in the morning... I can't WAIT to take photo's!!! LOL! I'm sure I will share!

Scrap On!
~Karrilee~

Finally - an Etsy sale, (Christmas Cards, and a Flip Book still unfinished)...

I have no good excuse - other than it is quite possible that I am now somehow functioning in and out of time?! It seems impossible - but Chuck informed me today that it has been a WEEK since I last posted - promising more to come in a day or two!? Oops!? I seem to be really flaky lately and I really loathe that trait - so I will work on it?! I feel like time has sped up - more than I am lazy!? LOL! At least that sounds better?! I don't FEEL overworked or too busy - but I am not really getting to all the things I am putting on my plate! (Which explains why this blog - and thus, you all - are being neglected?! It's not that I don't love you...honestly it's not! It's just that I have put all this pressure on myself to post WITH photo's of my latest project or at the very least, something witty and charming to say... and well... I am frankly just tired lately!?

I have two days a week that are now scheduled full all the time... it is good stuff and I know it is something I am supposed to be doing so I have the strength and stamina for it each week - but it's the days in between that seem to be getting lost?! I am thinking maybe if I allowed myself to SLEEP extra a day or two - I may catch up and feel rested?! I must quiet my mind... silence that ongoing audio clip of all the things I have to do... (This is not a normal cycle for me and I can see now firsthand how exhausting it is?!) I don't like it and I can't keep it playing... it seems as if somehow I am spread too thin. However, when I look on paper what I am committed to each week - it doesn't look like it should feel overwhelming?! But- I know enough to know - if the grace isn't there to do it - it's not worth the effort to keep it going! So - this week I have scheduled play time... maybe that will help!? And - as shocking as it may be... most of that play time does not involve crafts?! I do have tomorrow mostly open - and my PLAN as of tonight is to not even sit down here on the computer but to get a workout in and print some photo's and work on those (still unfinished) Christmas cards and assemble the super cute flip book! Maybe I will rent a movie and craft away for the sheer joy of it! I think I will be taking a break from my etsy store and trying to drum up more scrapbook business right now. Things have actually been pretty slow and while I usually have peace about that - I have found myself really trying to drum up new customers and find new clients and list new items and I have no peace about it! Especially since I also know in the back of my mind (thanks to that annoying ongoing audio) that I SHOULD be writing... so - this week, freedom from that pressure to drum up business... maybe some crafting just for fun, and a bit of playtime with friends... and next week? Writing!?!! SOMETHING at least... anything, at this point?!

So - consider this post a tease... and I will do my BEST to have something witty and charming (with photo's and everything) to post tomorrow evening!!!

Scrap On!
~Karrilee~

OK Chuck... I am alive...

I know - I know... I owe an apology for apparently making you all think I dropped off the face of the earth?! I didn't think I had neglected you for THAT long - but Chuck actually CALLED me ON THE PHONE today!?

Now - for those of you who know me - you know that I am not a big fan of the phone! I am way more connected to friends who either live in another State and talk online with me all the time, or friends who I see in person every week... sadly - if you fall in between there somewhere - well, it's not that I don't THINK of you - it's just that I really, really, really hate the phone?! LOL?! I would MUCH rather chat in person - but the next best thing is chatting online... for some reason the phone doesn't ever really tempt me?! Anyway - Thanks Chuck for checking in and making sure I am still drawing breath - and making sure that my computer is in fact NOT broken or crashed?!

I can't even really tell you that I have been super busy - or super productive... because I haven't?! I have worked on some Christmas cards - but have nothing assembled yet - that comes this week! I made an adorable little fold out mini for Fall photo's - but I have to actually go out and TAKE some of those before I can finish the mini... I will post pix when it is complete though - because it rocks!!! (if I DO say so! ...thanks Tracy for the instructions! I LOVE these and will be making more SOON I know!) I also made a few Thanksgiving/Count your Blessings Coaster chipboard mini albums for etsy. I read a book or two... still haven't gotten too in depth into Mitford... I am still on chapter 2 or 3... it's a slow read and I have other favorite authors who pull me right in from the start - so they win and I have been reading them instead. I am however going to visit my sister this weekend - so I NEED to finish at least Book One?! LOL!?

I did venture in to Craft Warehouse and spent about $100 of my Gift Card... I bought Christmas papers and fun stuff for my cards and Christmas crafts, as well as a new Paper Cutter which I LOVE and a few other odds and ends! I did exactly what I didn't want to do - just bought supplies that will not really last long and so I will have nothing to show for it?! But - they were things I needed so it is all good!

Here are the little Chipboard Mini's I worked on:

The new Christmas papers I am playing with are the new My Minds Eye line - (I think it's called Be Merry) - it's TOO cute... I'll post a few photo's soon!

Another thing that has kept me busy the past few weeks is I ended up taking over the local Yakima SparkPeople Team. I contacted the leader to check in and offer a bit of help... I joined and a few of us had met in person already and were wanting the Team to be a bit more active - anyway - in the end, I thought I would offering to assist, but she handed the team over to me! So - tomorrow we are having a Team Lunch and Wednesday I am meeting one of the members for coffee... it's not a heavy addition but it does require a bit of time and attention!

Last Friday I celebrated my Sweet 16... OK - it was my 16th Wedding Anniversary - but that still counts?! LOL?! We didn't do much... Kaye spent the night at a friends and we went out to New Thai - one of my FAVs! We watched a movie and just relaxed together... Saturday I was home all day waiting for my NEW MATTRESS to arrive! Yes - God bought me a new mattress - and we were SO overdue for a good one - we are sleeping MUCH better now! So - Saturday night, we went out with some of my old elementary and high school friends - that was weird! It was fun... we had a really good time - but it was strange?! LOL!?

Anyway - I am holding the new Nicholas Sparks book... so Mitford is gonna be lonely tonight (again?!) LOL!?

I will post more tomorrow (or maybe the next day!?) tee hee!? Darcie wants some mindless random facts or trivia of some kind - and I was just tagged (again?!) by www.pinkpatriceboutique.blogspot.com so I should give ya a little random somethin' somethin'! (No worries though - I will not be tagging anyone this time around!)

And just for fun... these are a few shots taken along the Yakima River... nice!!!

Scrap Happy!
~Karrilee~

New Etsy Listings & Awaiting my next job!

I know I SAID that I had plans of listing these new items in my etsy store LAST week... but I am just now getting to listing them this morning?! Aaah - the busyness of Fall... (not to mention diving into Mitford!) Mitford is a fictional town and my sister insisted that I read the entire series - so she handed me the STACK of books and pleaded with me to read them - so we could talk all things Mitford. She is somehow convinced this series will help me actually WRITE something?! We shall see?! This series is written by Jan Karon. I have seen her name everywhere but never read anything by her. Apparently this was her first book/series and Karinna is just WAITING for me to hurry up and read them... so I started yesterday. Yeah - between this stack, and the new Nicholas Sparks book that is on it's way to me... not to mention the OTHER stack of books I am working my way through - AND the new book I am doing a study on - well - who has time to list on Etsy!? LOL!?

Still - I am MAKING time today and tomorrow to at least what I have on hand right now... I have a few plans for projects to list but they are still in the making - so I will wait. I have sold once again a few things before I even had time to list. (...not that I am complaining, of course?!) I DO need to decide on a Christmas card LO and get busy on that as well... may need to host a SU! party or something to get my juices flowing, or at least put on some Christmas music?! I just can't make myself get into that mode quite yet for some reason?!

So - here is what I am listing today on Etsy:

My weekend was full... Friday night I took my kid to her first ever 'mixed' movie night... the group was the same that went to the fair together and it turned out fine - even though I had to find the boys place in the dark, while it was pouring rain, with directions taken (and given by) 13 year olds... what was I thinkin'!? We DID eventually find it... and then Dave and I got to go out for Gyro's for dinner! YUM!!! We watched "Without a Paddle" because... well, because I remembered that someone told Dave we would like it and we should watch it and I saw it at the library so it was free. Then, after I got it home, I remembered it was Walter from work who suggested the movie - so then I was scared?! THEN, we pressed play and found that it is an MTV movie (oh crap!?) but in actuality - it turned out to be a really good movie! Great message overall - and only one or two scenes that were - uh - what you would expect from MTV?! LOL!?

Saturday I did that 4mile walk that was really 4.7 miles in the end... and we walked most of it in the pouring rain! But it was fun and great exercise and, of course, for a good cause! I was able to hang out with the fam' a bit in the afternoon and then Kaye and I went to Borders to meet up with an old elementary school friend! We reconnected via Facebook and had been talking over the computer for a few weeks... this is the fourth friend I have met up with in person and even though years (and years - shut up!) have passed - everyone is still wearing the same face! Their eyes and teeth are still the same and it is so surreal to talk with them about grown up stuff while when I look at them I remember playing Horses at recess or sliding down stairs on blankets after school... (or - with some - getting sick after the party?! LOL?! Rest assured - THAT friend I met in Junior High?! LOL?!) Anyway - that was great and we had a good visit... we are trying to get a larger group together for coffee soon!

Sunday was church and lunch and relaxing... a bit of picking up the house and laundry, of course?! Oh - but in the mix, as I was trying to find something - ANYTHING? - that would fit for church, on a whim - I pulled out a ONE piece of clothing that I have held on to since pre-Kayelyn years... (other than my wedding dress, that is!) It's not anything special really... nothing fancy or expensive or anything at all! They were Dave's favorite pair of shorts that I ever owned. He loved them... thought that they were so cool... (maybe that should have been a clue to NOT hold on to them!?) still - they remained at the bottom of my storage bin for years and years! I pulled them out about two months ago just out of curiousity and tried them on... they barely got above my knees. I decided that even if I lost more weight - my body had changed - my hips were wider - and the likelyhood of these EVER making it up to my waist was pretty much zero! Yet - back in the bin they went! (Habit, I suppose?!) I normally pull out all my Fall/Winter clothes around now and put away my Spring/Summer clothes. Well - I got rid of all my Fall/Winter clothes because they were way too big... and my Spring/Summer clothes are really all I have right now - and even those are mostly second hand because I am so not into spending money on clothes that I do not plan on wearing for too long... so - my bin is relatively empty and while I was searching for something WARMER to wear - the shorts caught my eye... Well - you can see why:

(Insert Hallelujah Chorus here)... yep- I pulled them on, up and over the hips and booty - and zipped and snapped them! They fit... not that I would wear them, well - ever?! (to which my 13 year old daughter let out a HUGE sigh of relief, and my hubby - who, remember - LOVED them, insists that I should wear them because they are STILL that cool!?) Yeah - not so much?! Still - the thrill of putting them on and having them be BAGGY in areas (everywhere except the waist) was a HUGE encouragement! Where are they now, you ask? Yep - you guessed it - back in the bin!? LOL!? I am thinking it may be good to try them on in the Spring - hopefully they will be way too big by then?! (I know, I know... we're ALL hoping so! ..except maybe Dave?!)

So - this week as I said I am hoping to list all my Etsy stuff - as well as possibly make a few more things! I rec'v a deposit for my next Job - a Wedding Album! (always my favorites!) We are waiting for her photographer to get her all her photo's! I am so excited!!! On my calendar, I have penciled in time to work on my book... however, I am not sure that just WRITING it down will make me do it?! We shall see?! Mitford is waiting for me too...!?

Scrap On!

~Karrilee~

I LOVE FALL!!!

I know, I know... how many times can I say this? But, it is just true! I LOVE Fall... I love the colors, the scents, the crisp air, pumpkin spice lattes, homemade soups, ...I could go on and on and on!

So - even though I was exhausted and feeling yucky - I pressed through last weekend and pulled out all my fall Decor... LOVE it! It just makes me happy! Here are a few little touches:

On Sunday, I (inadvertently) sent my 13 year old to the Fair... with no adults?! Sure - it ended up fine... and she had a blast... but that was not my intent and it threw me off center for at least a few hours. She had been making plans with friends and I knew I should have been more involved - but they seemed to have it all worked out... the plan was to go after church with a group from GC (youth group) and one of the girls parents. I was fine with this... not a problem. The problem came when our daughter called us from the house and said that the parents were not going to go - but simply drop them off instead. Hmmm?! Now - this I have a problem with?! I tell her I will call her back and talk it over with Dave - who always thinks that nothing bad will ever happen so it was not a very productive conversation... (insert deep cleansing breath here!) He called and talked with a grown up and found out that they did not feel that their presence was necessary and so they were not going to go and chaperon. OK - this puts me in an awkward position... I WANT to say no - they need a chaperon. (Maybe this is just me?! Maybe at 13 - it is considered normal to be dropped off places and picked up with hours and hours in between!? Maybe I AM an overprotective parent of an only child!?) However, IF I say no, my kid now will miss the fair entirely because all of her friends are going on Sunday - together... without her?! Apparently we are the only parents who cared about this? So - after discussing it - we decided to let her go. Ultimately it wasn't so much not trusting her (or God with her) that upset me, it was how it was presented. Anyway - she had a blast and the group ended up running into one of the Children's Pastors from our church - who ended up staying with them the entire time playing Chaperon. I wonder if he thought that they needed one too, but I don't know?! At any rate - it was fine... but it threw me off and pushed me out of my comfort zone, that is for sure! My daughter, because she KNEW this and she loves me, called me a few times from the Fair to check in! Nice girl!!! (SMART Girl! LOL!)

Monday she had no school and I had a meeting at the house with a group of friends in the morning... we are starting a book 'club/study' and were picking our book. We ordered a book by Bill Johnson called The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind. I am SUPER excited!!!

Tuesday I was busy, busy, busy!!! I haven't taken any pix yet of my creations - but I will soon! A few frames, and mini-calendars, and a mini clipboard/frame or two! I haven't listed them in my Etsy store yet - but hope to tomorrow!

Wednesday I did a bit of reading, got in two workouts, and prepared for hosting the in-laws/family for dinner. Oh - I also bought a new scale. My old scale was never really 'mine' - it was Lorraine's and I would have to go down to her room and borrow it every week. This was fine when he (the scale) was sweet talking me on a consistent basis, but when he started not being able to make up his mind and giving me three and four different numbers - well - it was not so 'fine'! I replaced his battery - and yet, this did not help. So - I went out and bought a new scale... not a super expensive one. Not one with all the bells and whistles available now?! (Apparently they now can determine your weight, bmi (body fat), bone density, blood pressure, heart rate, the sex of your baby, and your lucky Lotto numbers?!) Mine just measures your weight. Well - he is SUPPOSED to... but he, too, is having a hard time DECIDING?! Given - he is only off a total of a pound or less, but still... he is brand new and should be more consistent?! I was having a hard day as all of his 'choices' showed a pound gain and my measurements didn't change at ALL over the past month. I have seemingly hit a plateau!? So - my in-laws get here and I am getting things ready in the kitchen first... I finally go out to meet them and my mil and one sil both go on and on about how there is so much less of me?! OK - that was MUCH needed yesterday!? LOL!? So - the new Scale remains yet unnamed... he is gonna have to sweet talk me a bit before I give him a pet name! (I HAVE, however, thought of quite a few OTHER names for him so far?!) Here is a comparison shot I did for my Spark Page... the 'before' pictures were taken in November of last year, and the 'now' ones were taken - well - now?! (in September!)

Today was spent walking with my sister, and visiting over coffee for hours and hours with my dear friend Lori! (This is my Every Thursday routine!)

Tomorrow?! Well - it is Friday and that means another Online Crop... I plan on stopping in there a bit as well as working on a few more projects and listing in my Etsy store.

Saturday I am doing a 4mile walk to support a local community service that my Dad is on the Board for... it is in memoriam to a long term friend of the family who was hit and killed last year. Dave is playing jazz on Saturday night and Sunday - well, is Sunday!

I will post photo's of my projects soon!

Until then,

Scrap Happy!
~Karrilee~