Project Life 2012

Happy New Year Everyone! It's been a while since I posted. I have enjoyed the holidays and now I'm ready to tackle 2012 with "delight". Delight is my one little word for the new year. I want to use "delight" as a sense. I want to delight in every little detail whether it be tasting food, seeing the seasons change, hearing my teenage son giggle....I want to not only savor the moments but I want to experience them with delight.

As the new year approached, I knew that making resolutions (as I have in the past) was just a waste of time if they were unachieveable. I'm not going to diet (maybe watch more closely what I eat) and I'm not going to exercise (who knows - I may WANT to get out and walk some so I can take photographs). But I did set a few goals for myself this year......
1) participate in Project Life 2012 - details below!
2) get my photos organized on my computer (which means - sort, delete, print, etc.)
3) doing #2 means I need to scrapbook more
4) get some sewing projects completed
5) visit the lake a lot more this spring/summer
6) sew/quilt a scrappy picnic tablecloth

I want to talk about Project Life 2012, for those that are not familiar with it. I know most of my blog readers are cross stitchers and believe it or not, I still stitch every now and then (maybe I need to add that to the list above - to stitch more LOL). This may be a project you will want to start (BTW - you can start ANY time). I know you "think" there is no way you could ever add another hobby to your day but this is so simple!!!! Almost everyone has a camera phone so take some photos and get started! Document your life!!!

Project Life 2012 is a concept that Becky Higgins began 4 years ago. Becky is WELL KNOWN in the scrapbooking world for her contributions to the Creating Keepsakes magazine as well as authoring some wonderful sketch books. This concept allows scrapbookers to get pictures in their books before the memories fade and to capture the day-to-day details, besides the holidays and other big yearly moments, in a flash. The products she designed are available through Amazon and consist of picture pocket page protectors, journaling cards, albums, etc. Everything a scrapbooker needs. So, why have I just now decided to do this?.........

Well......
1) The concept originally was to take a photo each day. A photo that represented that day or a moment that happened that would probably be forgotten in a weeks time but years from now would be a cherished memory. I knew that I would never be able to take a photo each day for 365 days!
2) I really don't like picture pocket page protectors. It was too confining for me. I'm a "lumpy" scrapper and I just couldn't buy into the print the photo and slip it in the pocket and be done.
3) As a "lumpy" scrapper, I love to embellish. I need to add more to my page.

At the end of 2011, as scrappers began to talk about their plans for the upcoming Project Life year, I realized that there were other scrappers like me! They wanted to embellish, they could not take a photo every week, they needed to scrap the way that was their style. I also realized this was MY album. I'm in charge so let's tweak the concept and do it!!! The main purpose is to capture the little details and moments - I can do that!!

My Project Life 2012 album...
1) does not contain picture pocket page protectors. I am scrappin' my photos onto 12x12 cardstock and doing a 2 page spread for each week.
2) probably will not consist of a photo for each day. I am focusing on the week, itself. I may take 5 photos in one day or something similar. But, I will focus on capturing little momemts, nature, things........I want to be able to look back in 5 or 10 years and see the furniture, see how the trees have grown or are gone, what was on TV, how electronics have changed, etc.
3) lets me embellish! I'm adding my die cuts, buttons, my snippets of life, etc.

This in NO WAY says that the way Becky, or other scrappers, do their albums is wrong. What Becky has designed has been a life saver for so many scrappers. People are documenting their lifes. The small stuff becomes much larger and more important years down the road. It is a great product and if you are a beginner (or advanced for that matter) and you want to get in on this, Becky makes it easy and gives you the tools to take all the guess work out of the equation! It's memory capturing made simple!

So, here it is.....The start of my Project Life 2012 adventure. My week is going to run Sunday through Saturday. My "plan" is to upload and print the previous week's photos on Thursday and scrap my pages over the weekend. I will "try" to post my page updates, here on the blog, on Thursday/Friday.

Title Page:

The 2 page layout (week one/1-1-12 to 1-7-12):

The left page:

And the right page:

Thanks for taking a peek inside my new adventure! If you are interested in getting more information on Project Life, click here. While you are there, check out Becky's design team. They will inspire you! I also have to give a shout-out to Michelle Wooderson for sharing her Project Life 2011 and now 2012. She has a style that I really admire. And if you have a little extra time, visit Glue Stick Girl too!

If you have any questions, just ask!!

edited to add #6 to my 2012 goals

A "Wicked" Good Time

Guess where Chris and I were Saturday..........



That's right! We traveled to Atlanta to the fabulous Fox Theatre to see the Broadway musical, Wicked. We have tried for 3 years to get decent seats for this event and boy, did we - Left Orchestra, Row G!! What can I say? This show was wonderful! The costumes, stage settings, makeup, music - superb! I love the whole story line and left appreciating why the Wicked Witch of the West was "wicked". It had lots of comical parts as well.

Now, seeing Wicked was great but visiting the Fox Theatre is a treat in itself. It has been a few years since I have visited and I'm always in awe when I come back. This historical Islamic/Egyptian style theater is beautiful. The tapestries, the ornate wall sculptures and decor sets the mood for any featured venue.

And once you are seated, you have to look up and see the "sky.... There are 96 crystal "stars" and 1/3 of them flicker. There is also a projection of rolling clouds. (FYI - one of the stars is actually a piece of a Coca Cola bottle!)

It was a wonderful day and a day to celebrate because...........it was mine and Chris' 22nd wedding anniversary!

We did celebrate a little late since our actual anniversary is on September 9th. But, it was well worth the wait! After leaving the theater, we headed to the Cheesecake Factory for a yummy dinner and of course, cheesecake. They have at least 20 different cheesecake flavors to decide from and it is always a hard choice. I go in with an idea of what I want but usually have to let the large window case speak to me - LOL! I went with the White Chocolate Caramel Macadamia Nut and Chris had the Dulce de Leche Caramel. Yummy-O!!

So, now it's Monday and back to reality. Have a great week!

RIP Barbie (Elizabeth)

Warning: This post contains information that may be sensitive to some. It describes the details of a murder investigation. It contains information regarding the crime scene but has been toned-down and is written as it would appear in a newspaper or other article. If you are overly sensitive to this type of information, please stop here......

As a young girl, I would spend some of my play time with my Barbie. I would dress her up, take her on bike rides and she would visit my BFF, Kim, who had a lovely pink townhome and swimming pool for all of our dolls to enjoy.

This past weekend, while out shopping, Corbin and I picked up a new Barbie to bring home. Only this time, Barbie is not Barbie. She is Elizabeth Short and even though she is dressed for a fun day at the beach, her beautiful life will soon change. She will come victim to a horrendous crime.

Corbin is taking a course in Forensic Science at high school this year. This is the first year the school is offering this course and it is the perfect starting point for his college career in Forensic Chemistry. The first assignment was to reconstruct a famous crime scene and include elements of evidence. He chose the murder of Elizabeth Short or The Black Dahlia, as she is worldwide known. Elizabeth was murdered in California in 1947. Her body was cut in half, completely drained of blood and organs, she was washed and dumped in a vacant lot behind a subdivision only a few feet from a street and sidewalk. The most bizarre fact from her murder was that the killer cut her cheeks in such a way that she appeared to be smiling. Over 200 people were interviewed for the crime and 50 actually confessed to doing it! Because of the lack of evidence, no one was ever charged for this crime.

There are a lot of details, crime scene photos and interviews that can be found on the internet. Elizabeth was a beautiful young lady who, by all accounts, was a "good-girl" and wanted a career as an actress. There are so many unanswered questions that maybe could have been answered if our modern day technology was available back then. This is what my son wants to do with his life. He wants to gather evidence, analyze it and be a voice for the victim. I am very proud of his decision to pursue this passion he has as a career.

Elizabeth, may you forever Rest In Peace!

Life's a Beach....

....and I'm playing in the sand!

I am back from 3 fun-filled days in Myrtle Beach playing in the sand, catching waves in the ocean and relaxing in the pool. Ahhhh....such joy and bliss! The weather was absolutely perfect. Warm but not hot. Overcast at times. Water cool but not freezing. I wouldn't change a thing!

One of the highlights of the trip was the ocean, itself. The water was perfect. Very clear and not a lot of shells which makes walking in the water much easier. We had a blast playing in the water and riding the waves on our boogie boards. The currents were a little strong so of course, I got wiped-out a couple of times. One time in particular, had me laughing so hard, I couldn't get up which means I got slammed a couple more times by the crashing waves. All I could hear was Corbin saying, "Oh My God! Mommy get up!" as he was laughing but trying to "save" me too.

We enjoyed fried shrimp baskets from the Tiki Hut on the beach. We tossed around a football. Corbin chilled with his Ipod. Like I said, just a perfect getaway.

This was a vacation that was centered around the beach. So, no plans to be anywhere at any time. We did get interrupted one day with a little pop up storm. But, it came late in the day so we didn't get to miss any "action". Storms at the beach are so fascinating to me. I love to watch the clouds roll in and see how the surf becomes more forceful.

Of course, like any vacation, it ends all too quickly. I'm ready to go back! This was a great way to wrap-up summer......

Good Bye Beach - See You Soon!!!

Happy Mother's Day

This is the reason I love this day........
Thanks Corbin for:
*making me happy
*giving me a good laugh
*playing pranks on me
*getting on my last good nerve
*listening to me every now and then
*taking out the trash
*being my concert/music buddy
*just being YOU!

To all the Mom's out there.....Happy Mother's Day!

Hello! Back home to reality!

I know, I know.....it's been like forever since I have updated my blog and for good reason. You see, I decided I needed to get away. I needed to spend time with my needle and thread. I needed to laugh uncontrollably and be with great friends. I needed to smell the ocean and stay up late. I needed my PALS!! So, in order to make the most of this get away adventure, I needed to get some stitching done. I needed to put together a grab bag, ornaments and kit up projects. In order to do that, I had to neglect all of my blogger friends. But, I'm back - tired - but I'm back. Back to reality. Since there is just so much that goes on during a PALS Convention, I'm going to break up my blog posts and give you a little each day. Let's start with all of the stitching and finishing I had to do before I left for the trip to Myrtle Beach.

This is my grab bag container. I used my paper crafting skills to decorate an empty paint can and filled it with lots of linen, fabric, scissors and other Halloween goodies.

I also stitched up this altoid tin pin cushion and scissor fob to go inside my grab bag paint can.

On Thursday night, we had a Fall and Halloween stitched exchange. I participated in the Halloween exchange and this was my piece - a Blackbird Designs Halloween Stocking. My good friend Amy got this one.

On Friday night, we had not only the grab bag exchange but the anticipated Christmas ornament exchange. I stitched these three ornies and was finishing them up right up to the last minute!

And last, but not least, here is a Blackbird Designs Halloween Cat design that I made into a pillow for the stitched exchange. At the last minute, I didn't participate so this one got to come back home with me.

There are lots of pictures out on the blogs of those that attended this year. You can see some of the pictures by visiting the blogs I have bookmarked on the right hand side of this blog page under "My Blog List". Go check them out and be sure to leave us a comment. We love sharing and we love to hear what you have to say.

I'll be back tomorrow with another installment of the fun PALS Convention 2010!!

Stay Tuned!!

Happy Mother's Day! - (long post)

Today has been a great day! I got surprised this morning with flowers and a home-made card, we went to Red Lobster for lunch and I got in a nice nap. The perfect day! I am so blessed to have Corbin as my son. He's growing up to be a responsible and respectful young man. He's my child but he's also my buddy!

Here's the flowers I got. Don't know how he did it since he was home alone yesterday. I can't help but wonder if he walked the 3 miles one way to the nearest store to get these in the heat of the day....


I also have to share a finish.....not only did I stitch this ornie, I finished it into an ornie! That's remarkable for me and it's only May - whoo hoo!


I also want to share some photos from First Friday in our town. Corbin's high school band played for a couple of hours and did another amazing job.

Bon Jovi Rocks!

I have been missing in action only because I am still trying to get over the "Bon Jovi Experience" from this past Thursday night. Corbin and I were able to get VIP Party Suite tickets to see Bon Jovi - a band I have been in LOVE with since the 80's. It was a FABULOUS concert - one I will never forget. They played for 2 1/2 hours straight and sound as good live as they do on CDs. We are still riding cloud nine! Here's a couple of photos from the 207 that I took - LOL!

1st Gig!

Saturday night was the 1st "gig" for Corbin and his friends (guitar club at school). They performed along with other "unknown" talent in our town at the science center. They were awesome!! I am so proud of them!! They did a mix of classic rock with a little funk mixed in. Some ZZ Top, Jimi Hendrix, Herbie Hancock and Almond Brothers. They had the crowd rocking in their seats, for sure!

Here's a couple of photos of the night....