It's Not Too Bad...

Ok, so Divine Intervention working... I am exercising, but not losing weight. Hopefully, I will at least lose some inches. I couldn't get it in me to walk to the pool yesterday, so I asked hubby to drive us, and that we would walk home. Ya see... Stacy was at school (had the meet) and didn't have her bike; Rey was at the school next door and was going to walk to the meet and meet us (lol!) and didn't have her bike. So... my only option was to either get a ride and take the stroller, or stroll myself there. I am LAZY! So... I chose the first option.

Stacy did semi-ok at her meet. She really thinks it's a Sunday Swim or something, because her times (as well as her casual stroke) showed she wasn't giving it her all. She puts much more effort into her dramatic faces. I wish she'd put it into her stroke or kick, then it might increase her speed.

Rey practiced afterward. Her shoulder is feeling much better. The coach has worked them pretty hard since getting back from a clinic. These kids need it, and the coach, therefore, has my eternal support. Plus, she's a great coach! (as well as my friend... Go Robyn!)

And... I will be "working" the meet on Saturday from a different angle than usual. (Thanks, Desiree!) I am actually going to be an "Official" (in training). Bring out the whites (and khakis), folks, as Lisa is going to be a "Stroke and Turn Referee." Yes! I am on my way... lol! Anyway, it saves the team a great amount of $$$, which we could totally use, and could get me on my way to my officials certification. Yeah, me! I think it will be a blast. It's a sure-fire way not to miss one of my kids' events, right? Uh, huh...

And so... I've also been working on a couple of sketches and ideas for my scrapbook... I have a vision, but it is not quite coming on board. I have had lots of hits on a messageboard for my Beach Scene layout, but not many comments. Lots of hits, though. Those Cricut ladies are awesome! I was so happy with the layout and the way the new techniques worked, that I just wanted to share it and see if others were as excited as I was. Also... Karen liked the accordion so much that she asked how to do it, and (YEAH KAREN!) did one herself. She stepped out of her box! I just need other people to realize that even though something appears "difficult" that it isn't, and it can still be "simple".

Now, I'm at a loss. Like I said in yesterday's post, I'm working on this one layout for Michelle's Quincenera. I would like to do "The Princess & Marissa" angle, and I think it will work, but there are so many photos from that event, and I don't want to dedicate more than two pages to it... so... I'll have to do more hidden things. I like the "hidden" elements. They are fun to do. However, I am trying to use only what I have. So... I am thinking and thinking, because, of course, I want to go buy something new! A new "magical" paper, stickles, glitters, rhinestones... whatever... But, I need to make sure I stick with and use only what I have. That is my challenge! It's a good one. But I will succeed.

I have work to do tonight, as well as the layout for the Meet Program, which I hope to take to the printer tomorrow. And I've got to work on a couple of elements from my page... Today we will bike to practice... tomorrow will be a repeat of decision from yesterday (walk... or get a ride).

BTW... the walk home wasn't so bad. It was cold, but we kept moving and stayed warm, until we got home... then we froze while I looked for the garage door opener... Yikes! Gotta keep that thing a little more handy! With the wind blowing and the colder night air, our sunny Southern Cali wasn't so "sunny". Life is good... Now if only everything would work right! lol! Toodles for now! lisa

YAHOO!!! Who knew? and another ALERT!!!

For a bit of the morning, I have been trying to access my Yahoo account. It is "freezing" anytime I click on an e-mail. I assumed it was my computer. However, I am able to log in here and type this... as we speak! (LOL!)

For those of you who are nearby, or who would like to support my swimming kids, or even our team... SHOUT OUTS! are due today. Also, so are team/program sponsors to ensure publication in this Saturday's meet Program. If you are interested in giving an encouraging note to anyone on the team, or placing a business ad, please contact me by leaving a comment below or e-mailing me at info@mvaq.com. We appreciate any and all sponsorship and look forward to working with you.

Another DEAL ALERT! Tomorrow - April 9th, Walgreen's is developing one roll of film (per household) for FREE!!!! Yes... for those of you who still use the old 35mm (or still have some rolls stashed somewhere - I know I do...) you can get one roll developed for free... tomorrow only.
Since Marissa was slightly sick, and we stayed home from the pool last night... I played with my new Happily Ever After Cricut cartridge last night. It took me a while, but I think I've got it figured out. After hours of frustration, I realized I was actually doing something wrong... yes... ME! I couldn't believe it either! lol! But I did create my own version of Aurora (Sleeping Beauty). She is more Hispanic looking with dark hair, eyes, and skin... I thought it would be pretty cool to do a layout of a Quincenera (15th Birthday) with this being the "Princess." I still have to finish her by chalking and putting her in the layout and adding "sparkle", but I thought I'd show my "in-process" mode...

Oh yeah! Stacy has a high-school swim meet today... wish her luck! I'll be walking there... (Divine Intervention - lol!)

That's all I got for now... I'm going to run bot-checks and ad-aware (mal) so maybe Yahoo can get "un-stuck." Toodles for now! lisa

DEAL ALERT!!!

A friend of mine (thanks, Karen!) was nice enough to inform me...

MICHAEL'S ARTS & CRAFTS STORE IS HAVING A SALE!!!! - ENTIRE INVENTORY OF CRICUT CARTRIDGES ARE $39.99 - CUTTLEBUG IS ALSO 50% OFF!!!!

That is just way too good! That could be cheaper than eBay... However, they are not offering rain checks, so it is limited to what they have in stock, which is never the "popular" cartridges. Hmm... it still looks as if I may have to put stuff on eBay today to get a little "cash-in-hand!"

Also... if you have any Walgreens near you, I have discovered a great way to save $$$! I know... we've all tried refilling our ink cartridges in order to save money and to be more "green." We ended up with a mess and with cartridges that no longer worked properly. Walgreens refills cartridges, but they do it professionally and quickly! It usually takes about 15 minutes in the store. To refill a cartridge, color is $15 (sure beats the $34 for a new one!) and black is $10 (as compared to $19 for a new one!). I had them do it and have had no messes, with the cartridges printing just as well as before. There are some printers/brands they won't refill, but I have an HP, and it did just wonderfully! Go to www.walgreens.com for info about which cartridges they will/won't refill. Do not check out the "ink cartridge refill" box to find a location. Call the location nearest you, as they are not all registered with this service, even though they do it.

Today is semi-back-to-normal day. Kids go back to school - Spring Break is OVER!!! I go back to semi-normal routines... as normal as possible without a vehicle - NO! the other driver did not have insurance... oh well. Such is life. I am guessing this was Divine Intervention telling Lisa (me) to get off her (my) fat butt and EXERCISE!!! And so... we will be biking and/or walking to practices. At least I have Juan's car for the morning stuff. Oh well... that's my day planned... so far. Gotta drop off the kiddies... Toodles for now! lisa

I found it!

Coca-Cola stuff is one of my other passions. My brother, in answer to one of my quests for knowledge, put me in touch with this fabulous site: http://www.2collectcola.com/page/ACC/CTGY/TSB! They have Coca-Cola scrapbooking stuff like pages, all kinds of different stickers, borders, etc. The prices aren't too bad either. But hey! They have even more treasures than scrapbooking stuff! If you love Coca-Cola, like me, you will love this site! Thanks, Josh!

I have also now finally won the Tags Bags Boxes & More Cricut cartridge via eBay. Thank you everyone who helped try to find it for lower.

And... I also got "Happily Ever After" (which features Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White, Mulan & their story fellows) and "Dreams Do Come True" (which features the remaining Princesses - Belle, Ariel, Pocahontas, Jasmine & their story fellows). These were on clearance at Walmart for $45 with no shipping needed! Juan actually bought one for me! Thank you! I love them, and so do the girls... especially Marissa. She thinks they are hers, but they can be used "for" her. There are some really cute things on each cartridge, besides the actual characters, so I am so psyched to test them!

I have a "lot" of Coluzzle stuff coming and can't wait for it to get here!

I just love all of my new toys. My girls are getting more interested, the more they see... However, they keep asking me, "Can you make me one?" My thought is that I would love to, but I really want them to take it up more and learn to do it themselves. Karen & I are doing another scrapbooking day today, so hopefully they will join in. Until later... Toodles for now! lisa

Back Again!

First, let me say that I've worked hard trying out new techniques and reading a lot... as you can see in this photo of my latest page. True... Labor Day 2007 was quite a long time ago... but I finally got it into my book.

These next two are "closer-ups" of the double-page layout.

Here, I did an accordion-style technique that allowed me to incorporate several more photos. There are photos on each side of the accordion.

Then, I used a photo for a pocket and added hidden "pull-out" journaling.

Also, on the first page, there are tags with several "faces". This allowed me to showcase the "flip-side" of things (Jr. made some really funny faces, that I put onto the tags) and do some more hidden journaling.

The letters and numbers are punch outs, sprayed with adhesive, coated with sand, then applied with "Crystal Lacquer" to make it shiny and raised. The letters ended up being pretty heavy, so I adhered them to the pages with with "red tape."

The papers, I cut and tore, to resemble the many layers of the beach and the beautiful day that we experienced. I'm very proud of these pages... However, I am for now on ordering my prints online, as I don't particularly care for the glossy and would rather get the matte finish. The glossy is just way too difficult to keep fingerprints off of.

This layout took quite a while for me, as there were several new techniques. I didn't want to do too many pages for the one event, so I explored my options so that I could do as many photos as I wanted without using a lot of space. This was very successful (at least I think so). The pictures of the pages do not do it justice. I also wanted the viewer to experience the pics, so I made it as interactive as possible, and added the pull-outs and flips.

Also, the use of Crystal Lacquer was something I've wanted to do since I saw the stuff at the the EXPO. The company who makes it, though will for sure be getting a letter from me. Although I love the final result, this was an extremely messy thing. Mess, I don't mind, but the product leaked from the bottle when pressure was applied. It also took much longer to dry than the instructions said. 15-45 minutes my foot! It took almost 24 hours! So... needless to say, I wasn't able to finish it when I thought I would be able to.

Oh yeah! I got to use the Crop-a-Dile Big Bite... now I really want one! The eyelet and brads were set through it. Gotta love that! Works like a dream!!!

I did another couple of layouts from the Butterfly Exhibit, but they are done. I need to finish off the titles and journaling, so my Cricut will be whipped out tomorrow, and I'm hoping to complete them.

I've been trying to not think about my beloved car so much, as it will be another 2-3 weeks. We'll see... for now gotta go! Today is "family day" as Juan's home and so is his daughter. I was hoping the sun would peek out so we could go bike riding, but so far, it is still gloomy and chilly. Yuck! Toodles for now! lisa

My Favorite Tools and What I'm Looking For...

Most of you know I love scrapbooking and other crafts. Right now, I'm more fascinated with the scrapbooking. Here are some of my faves:

I adore my Cricut and use it constantly for many things. I only have a couple of cartridges: Mickey and Friends, Mickey Font, George and Basic Shapes, Paper Dolls, and Sampler (a concoction of bits from a couple of cartridges). I am currently looking for: "Tags Bags Boxes & More" and "Zooballoo". Also... I am looking for Cricut Design Studio (computer program that allows you to do much more with your existing cartridges). If you have any information on these (excellent deals or sites), please let me know!

Also, I just recently started using the Coluzzle cutting system by ProvoCraft. This system allows you to do precise cuts each and every time. I know my Cricut cuts, but this other system allows me to center my photos and cut those, too! Yeah! I have the following templates: tags and bookplates; boxes; and small nested circles. These are great. I am looking for the following: any nested templates, puzzle templates, and a alphabet template with "straight" letters (no dots or bumpies!).

We love "Red Tape!" It is one of the greatest things imaginable. Oh... and Glue Dots! Gotta get my adhesives... Pop Dots are another wonderful three-dimensional adhesive that finds its way into my hands often.

I am awaiting my Cropper Hopper paper organizing system to come in the mail (eBay auction), so that my little problem of paper pulling goes away. This will probably become another favorite.

Karen got a Cropadile Big Bite... and it is awesome... so awesome, that... I want one, too! It can punch a hole through anything. I would love to make a CD album... So, those of you who are close by... save those destroyed CD's for me! I could recycle them and put them to excellent use!

Another thing that I am looking for (craft/scrap-wise) is anything Coca-Cola. I picked up some stickers at Michael's the other day (on clearance) for $1.29, but haven't been able to find any papers or other items. A nice die-cut would be cool. Or... a cool Coca-Cola paper or ribbon... I love Coca-Cola and just thought it would be excellent to do a page of ME! I never do myself, and thought it would be fun... Suggestions or comments? Help! is really what I'm after!

One other thing that I would totally love is a "Bind-It-All." These are kind of expensive (at least to me). But would be totally excellent in making my (our... sorry, Karen! - we share, ya know... lol!) own books, albums, chipboard and bigger things. It basically puts an almost spiral-type binding on things (punches the holes at least).

Today is the usual... laundry day. But, I have to do some writing and other things, and then we're scrapping this evening, as there is no swim practice (for either kid). Jolene (my sister) seems to be doing fairly well. Her swelling is going down... now if I could only get her to eat!

The insurance adjuster finally called yesterday. She said she would find out the information I had been calling everybody else for... they are paid to do it (lol!). It seems like it will still take a while. Bummer! I could really use a bigger car than Jolene's... An auto sales rep called today, stating that he could get us what we already had (or at least pretty close to it). The only thing is... if we were to get a new car, we are probably looking at (maybe) a Tahoe Hybrid. It could totally save on gas! You'll have to check it out (or wait for updates).

Anyway, gotta get going... Stacy has an ortho appointment, and I have to finish laundry and start dinner, too. Have a beautiful day... we are! - Toodles for now! lisa

It's a Great Week... so far...

Although the ending of my week wasn't so good last week, this week is much better. Gone are the stressful days of running around, getting kids to two different schools, picking them up at two different times, taking them to two different practices. School is out! We have just been sitting and "gel-ing." Yes, we are getting some stuff done, but it is much more casual, and I am lovin' it!

Easter was also a great thing. With the "issue" from last week, I was driven by Juan to my mom's. My sister was there with her fiance, and my brother with his family. We didn't have the Easter Bunny... but we sure had a chipmunk (my sister!). She is recuperating from a jaw surgery (Friday also) and was a tad swollen. Yikes! We had a great time with the kids hunting for eggs (which contained $$$). Then we did dinner, talked a lot, and went home (I drove my sister's car, so I had transportation... Juan went to work from my mom's house).

Monday was different but easy. I slept in! Yeah! And it felt really good.

I'm still a little stressed from calling my insurance, the police, the "other" insurance, etc. and not getting a response back, but without running everyone around, it was much less stress on me, and I worked through it. (I made the same calls today without a response, too!) I'm still a little sore (stress and tension does that to a body), but overall, I'll survive and be okay.

We went to practice (the high-schoolers are swimming with the club swim team during spring break), and Stacy swam (Rey was at my mom's, taking care of my sister). I had deck duty and watched Marissa at the same time... boy was that a challenge! We were done fairly early and went home. No pressure, no going to bed at a certain time, no homework worries... it is GREAT!

Today was more of the same, (especially the "sleeping in" part!) except Rey and my sister came home. Jolene (my sis) is going to stay for awhile until she is okay on her own. The swelling has gone down a lot and she is able to eat "solids" through a syringe (YUCK!). But... swim practice was cancelled unexpectedly due to maintenance failing to unlock the pool gate. Hey! That bites!

Dinner tonight was super easy. Egg salad! Yum! Gotta love that egg salad on whole wheat with lettuce... Easy and not wasteful, and the best way to use up those Easter eggs.

Oh yeah... and I forgot. One of the must-have features I've decided I absolutely need for any vehicle (should we seriously have to get a new one) is automatic headlights! I was driving my sister's car and couldn't figure out why it was so dark! Whoops! I guess that's a little something I got way too used to! Just one of my random thoughts besides... gotta get scrappin'! Toodles for now! - lisa