So Begins... 2012

From reading some blogs over the last couple of days, I got this quote! I really like it and

thought I'd share it with all of you too!

For quite a few years now, I've enjoyed following Ali Edwards blog. In her blog, she has shared her one word concept which has become a tradition of hers. Every January she decides on her new word. A word to focus on, mediate on and reflect upon in her daily life. So this year I thought I would start this tradition. I think its going to be very inspiring over the year.

My One Little Word of 2012 is...... embrace

2011 brought lots of joy to my life. My dear wonderful man got down on one knee here on October 8th at our store and ask me to marry him. I said yes and I cannot wait to begin planning for our 2013 wedding! I am so excited to create everything for our wedding day. I also got the honor of being an aunt for the first time on my side of the family in 2011 to the most amazing twin little boys. It's an incredible feeling to be an aunt (I wonder what if feels like to hold your own baby for the first time because the feeling I got with these two little guys was truly the best day of my life). It's also great being an aunt to twins because I don't have to worry about sharing one baby between my dad and I. *hehe Also cannot forget at the beginning of 2011, moving my store into my beautiful new store front. Even though had some amazing moments of 2011, I'm glad to say goodbye to a wonderful but challenging year. In 2012, I really want to embrace the side of me that makes me happy a little bit more, put a little drive into it and enjoy. This year is going be full of making plans... decision making... and embracing everything along the way. Now off to create my first page of 2012! Bye for now!

Jodie

BUSY! BUSY!

I'm having a bit of design block right now, so I thought I'd take the time to update my blog. I've been busy doing quite a few different projects this month for other people and its been busy. Unfortunately, getting none of the things I had planned completed for myself, but that will be some projects for January! I cannot wait to do something for me! Number one creative priority for January is putting together my December Daily. I have been pretty good at taking pictures everyday and somewhat documenting life in December, but the fun part of putting it all together hasn't been completed.

Is anyone else creating at this time of year? If so what are you working on?

I thought I'd give you a sneak peek in the creative disaster that I have made working away! It's scaring how fast a creative disaster can happen after having your head down scrapping away. Hopefully it won't take to long to clean up when I finish up later on! I'll show you pictures of what I have been working on as soon as I have a creative block again or get a free moment!

Happy Scrappin' or Crafting Everyone!

eeekkkkk... I'm a terrible blogger!

Well it has been a while since I last blogged. It's been a crazy November! I should have maybe started this blog in the New Year, as its coming to that Holiday Season, where I am running around trying to get everything done in the few hours I have left in a day after working. I am normally that person who has all three Christmas Trees in my house up the day after Remembrance Day, but well its November 29th and two down, one to go! The third one is up, just have to decorate it tonight with my fiancee hopefully. I love decorating for Christmas, it brings me so much joy walking into my home after a long days work and seeing the twinkle of the lights on the trees and on our home. It always brings a smile to my face.

For me, Christmas is thinking about others and making time for Family and Friends. It's not about the Gifts, its about family. This year is going to be a special year for us with the new babies on my side of the family. I am sooo excited about our first Christmas with them as I am sure Grandpa and Grandma J are too! They are smitten with being Grandparents for the first time and it being to twins too is pretty cool. I love seeing my dad's face while he snuggles with his little men. Makes me tear up just picturing it in my head. It's just sooo sweet!

This year I've decided to create a December Daily Album. It's definitely been inspired by Ali Edwards. I've followed her December Daily over the last couple of years and I decided this year was the year to create this for me. For me its a journal and a scrapbook for the month of December, documenting traditions and a month that definitely is one of my favourites. I've downloaded Ali's Digital Page Layouts and have printed them off and started to put together my mini album. I'll be doing blog posts about it throughout December.

I have been working on some custom scrapbook pages for a great friend of mine! I love scrapbooking her photos and I love how the pages are coming. I'll give you a sneak peek of some of them after I've finished my project for her. Also working on some items for a friend and customer for her Daughter's 3rd Birthday. I cannot wait to see her pictures!

Well back to cleaning up some scrap papers that have I have hanging around and start prepping for tomorrow night's class "Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas" I quite like how this layout came together. Still some spots, so if you are interested give me a call at the store 519.474.2665 so I make sure there is a kit for you!

Halloween Part 2

Sunday night we finally got a free moment to put up our exterior decorations! I hadn't had a moment to snaps some photos. I wanted to while Henry is up on the latter installing some tulle on the front of the house and our GIANT spider web, but its kinda hard to take pictures and hold a latter at the same time. I would have loved to get those action shots to scrapbook to tell a bit more of a story to our Halloween Scrapbook pages! There is always next year!

So, I tried taking some pictures last night; Halloween Night of the outside of our house. I managed to get one and the battery died. I think its maybe time to invest in another battery for our Canon Rebel! Some days I just wish I had a camera that just took plain old AA Batteries.

Here is the outside of our home at Halloween 2011!

My only photo I got! I'll be snapping some more before we take all down!

Anyways tonight is another night and I won't have the cute little distractions of last night coming knocking on our door trick or treat'n, and I now have a fully charged battery to get snapping photos of some Halloween Layouts.

If you have kids, hope your Little Trick or Treaters' had a blast last night!

It's Halloween! PART 1

Hope you are all ready for the fun night tonight!

Happy Halloween Everyone!

To be honest, I was never a fan of Halloween until I meant Henry! It's his favourite time of year, so now I really like it too! We enjoy going all out on decorating the front of our home and inside too for Halloween and taking a drive around the neighbourhood to see how others have decorated the fronts of their homes! I too enjoy getting inspired by others.

Halloween Decorations at the Store...

It's always fun decorating the store and being inspired with some paper lines that comes in. This year I was inspired by the My Mind's Eye Mischievous Collection of papers for my decorating palette at the store. I wanted to keep with a simple colour palette of Orange and Black against the blue wall above our Fireplace in the front of the store. I thought it worked out perfectly with the colours from that paper line.

I created a 12X12 Collage of paper with a couple of bats for inside my Bella Blvd Wood Handpainted Frame using the paper collection inspired from a layout I had created previously. Who knows I might even work this collage of papers into a layout later with the photos from the store this year!

The bats on the blue wall were found at another craft store and are reusable. The package came with a lot of them on the sheet. I was able to use them in the store as well as at home! I have cut these types of things out of vinyl before with my Silhouette, but wasn't able to reuse them! So I was excited to find these this year! And I just love using Paper Lanterns (these ones are by Martha Stewart and came with the little accessories to make them look like pumpkins!) They are an easy way to accessorize any decor!

I put together a wee little pumpkin from cardstock using the Silhouette Digital Cutter 3D Pumpkin download! Just had to download this 3D Pumpkin onto my Silhouette as soon as I saw it to put together this year for my display! It's just too cute! It would be easy to make if you didn't have a Silhouette too! Instead of using the stem in the Silhouette design, we put some green ribbon it it!

Pictures of my tiny pumpkin made from paper and ribbon and a couple snap shots of the front entrance Halloween Display at Scrapbook Memories - London, Ontario (our store)

Decorating for Halloween in our Home...

I love seeing all the excited little and sometimes scared little faces. We don't mean to scare away the kids with the fog and scary sounds that surrounds our home, just us big kids having fun! I love seeing all the costumes coming to our door to get some candy.

Henry and I really enjoy decorating our home for Halloween, just as much as I enjoy decorating for Christmas! Just wait til you see that! From the outside of our home, right down to our bathroom, the entire main floor of our home is decked out in Halloween. I wanted to share a couple photos I've taken so far of the Foyer of our home... and our dining room table! I wish I had a chance to take photos of everything, but when I am home its late at night and not the greatest light for taking photos! So I'm creating this blog post into two!

Well, that's all the blogging I can do for today! I have a task ahead of me tonight to snaps some photos of the outside of our home and a sampling of Halloween Scrapbooking Layouts through out the years! Looking forward to completing that tonight, and putting together Part 2 of this Halloween Post hopefully tomorrow! Stay Tuned!

So it begins today!

Well, I have been sitting on fence about doing my own personal blog, and I have had this blog address for YEARS waiting to do it. Well today is the day! This blog is just about me, and what I do. My goal is to inspire everyone to CREATE!

Crafting has always been my thing. Ever since I was little, I have enjoyed "crafting" and hoarding my craft supplies. Santa always used to bring me the coolest craft kits. If you ask my cousins, they used to ask to use my craft things, but I just couldn't let them. My excuse was they might of wrecked it and it had to stay perfect! It just couldn't be used! I didn't learn to share very well, but I am much better now. Where I am originally from, NO ONE is called by their given name, just all nicknames, well mine is "Marda" aka Martha Stewart. I like it, it suits me!

I'm still a hoarder of crafting stuff, but I sure do a lot more crafting then when I was little and had to keep it all PERFECT and not used! Scrapbooking is my thing! This blog is going to hopefully inspire so many people to preserve their memories through scrapbooking and that show you that handmade things are COOL!

Alright well thanks for reading my first blog post, I am now excited about it! See you all VERY soon!