I've been playing with the camera...

I love this girl...

Little Treasure Box

I told ya I'm on a MM kick! I need to figure out a good way to use up all the little scraps I have still, though. This little box was just too cute to pass up. I bought it last week at my LSS. (Speaking of that... Memories in Bloom just started their very own blog! Stop on over, and tell Georgie I sent ya.) Okay, back to the little box... isn't it the cutest little thing. I used up some of my fuzzy rub-ons from Heidi Swapp that I've had forever. They're such a bugger to work with, but I do love the outcome if only I can be patient. I think I'm going to fill this little thing up with all of my favorite MM flowers and buttons, so they'll be at hand when I need them. They're currently in a cello bag right now. That's no fun, but this little treasure chest is. I feel like a little kid with a secret hiding place for my favorite little things. Heehee!

Arts & Craps

My craft space was dubbed the "Arts & Craps" room quite some time ago. I think it was my dad who coined the phrase for my hobby way back in elementary school when I initially began crafting construction paper mosaics and pop-up cards. In fact, my mom still has the first Valentine card I ever designed from way back in 1992. That was second grade. I made a butterfly out of different sized heart shapes and a few doodles. It's pretty lame, but I guess I was feelin' it at the time. Anyhow, I found this 47-cent doorknob hanger at the local craft chain a while back, but just this afternoon it started calling to me. As you can tell, I'm kinda on a Making Memories kick. The other two projects I made today are also from MM. Gotta love it!

Old School

One of my old high school friends just posted a picture on her site of all of us in theatre class. It's hilarious! I think we're freshman in this picture. I just can't stop laughing!

Tagged

Oh, Michelle, is SOOO UBER SWEET! She became an instant friend through blogging since she's apart of the Army family, and she lives in TEXAS! Who doesn't love that? She tagged me on her blog yesterday morning, too. I've been pretty lame on the blog tags lately, but I think I need to start sharing the virtual hugs again, so here goes.... THE RULES!!! 1. Only five people allowed. 2. Four of them have to be dedicated followers of your blog. One has to be new and live in another part of the world. 3. You have to link back to who gave you the award. Number one HAS to be my best friend, Debbie! Estivalia of course has to be on the list too. We both started blogging around the same time, and she's become one of my closest friends although she lives all the way in Chile! Oh, and Lauren! We went to middle school and high school together. I think we even went to the same elementary school. I love this girl!!! Let's not forget Marie! She's a military girl too, so of course she's THE COOLEST! Hmmm... I need one more person whom is new and from a different part of the world... I just spent over an hour searching for someone ANYONE to add to my list, but I'm still drawing a blank. Does anyone out there have a suggestion???

Elephant Card

I'm totally in love with the Animal Crackers collection from Making Memories. I love all this glittered stuff. Whatever kind of thing they did to make the glitter not fall off of the paper is genius. Ironically, Brad is the one who gave it to me for my birthday back in May. I'm just now getting around to it though. I'm always scared to use the stuff I love. I just want to have it forever! I love all the little die cut animals that came in the embellishment kit too. I think I want to do a series around these little animals. The little box came with tons of stuff, but I only have three sheets of cardstock. I need more!

Stampin' Up! Sale

From August 11-September 30, enjoy a 15% discount on select brand-new, die-cut stamp sets from the Fall-Winter 2008 Idea Book & Catalog--no additional purchase necessary!

Click here to see a larger flyer.

Click here to see the NEW CATALOG!

Fort Knox

I'm off to Fort Knox again. As usual I'm feeling uber creative right when I have to leave. I'll be back on Thursday though. I have to leave Lilly with Brad. It's too late to change that arrangement. I was supposed to have dinner with him last night and drop off Lilly since I have to leave at the butt crack of dawn, but he texted me at the last minute to say he has a date that might run late, so he'll have to get her in the morning. I guess he's was expecting to break out the "party hats" or something. Ew!!! (I hear you, Debbie!) I'm so angry. I always complain about my horrible dates and being stood up. He calls those guys "jerks" which always makes me feel better, but I think he's the jerk now. I'm only sorry I blow-dried my hair. Anyhow, here's a sneak peek for you...

Van Gogh

I've always loved the Lollipop Shoppe collection from Basic Grey, but I've been hoarding this paper for way too long. I don't think they even make it anymore. Anyhow, as soon as I saw the new Making Memories glittered die cut shapes from the Noteworthy Collection I knew I had to dig it up. I just love all those bright fun colors. I've been on a card kick lately preparing for a craft show, so I decided to make a little altered box. I wanted it to be a place perhaps that a little girl could keep fun little things like notes, jewelry, or other doo-dads. I'm not sure exactly what I'll do with it though.... how about turning it into a coordinating card kit? I do have tons of paper and embellies left, so why not?

Cards

Woo! Hoo! The September issue of Cards is finally out! It seemed to take so long for this book to come out. I submitted my card way back in April. (You can catch up on the previous details here and here.) I haven't received my copy of the book yet, so I'm still anxious about seeing my card in print. I really hope it didn't end up on the cutting room floor. The post office can't work fast enough. Someone hurry up, and find a copy to let me know. Ahh! It's killing me!

Quickutz

I'm just not using my Quickutz the way I used to, so I'm downsizing my collection. My old stamp sets will be the next to go. If you're interested you can check it out here.

Nutrisystem

Okay, so my Nutrisystem came yesterday! That was really fast. I cleaned out my entire cupboard. I threw out everything that was expired (oops!), and put the rest in a box for the food pantry. My pantry is completely stocked now though. I can't spare an extra inch! I do have small cupboards though. It's quite annoying. I only have two skinny drawers in my kitchen too. I hate that! One for silverware and one for towels. The rest of my kitchen utensils are crammed into a jar on the counter. I guess I'll need to take a photo now, huh? Anyhow, the only food I've tried so far was the fudge brownie. The flavor isn't terrible, but it's so stinkin' sticky. It's kinda like eating a wad of peanut butter. It's definitely filling though! :-) I think I'm going to see if the Weight Watchers cakes and cookies are a comparable substitue based on calories and fat sorta stuff. They expire way more quickly than the Nutrisystem, but that just makes me think they're more fresh!

Something New

I ordered this yesterday.

Samantha

Remember Samantha? I introduced her in this post. Well, she's here! She came up to Tennessee for a four-day weekend. Today we went to the Adventure Science Center in Nashville, but first stopped for some BBQ and finished off the day with a stop at an old fashioned ice cream parlor and a souvenir shop. We also did some crafting. Her big sis, Chelsea, is off to college this fall, so we decided to make a picture frame for her dorm room. Samantha picked out all the colors, and I assembled the project out of a broken Goodwill frame. I designed it to be used vertically or horizontally. It didn't have any glass, so instead I attached a clip with a brad so she can change the picture easily as often as she changes boyfriends! Hmmm... maybe I'm thinking of my own dating life. Oh, and that's still as lame as ever if you're wondering. I'm still signed up for four different dating sites with meager results so far. I've had dates here and there, but they seem more self-obligatory. I have to convince myself more and more that I need to keep myself in the game rather than being unrealistic in thinking Mr. Right will just happen to knock on my door because he needed to use a tire iron after his car got a flat in my culdosac while en route to the emergency room where he's a medical intern. He also has a Yorkie and arranges flowers for the elderly on the weekends. Oh, and he loves his scrapbooking mother. Anyway... here's the frame:

Blog Candy!

I'm back from West Point again. I've been completely antsy about getting back into my studio, but when I walked into it I didn't feel as inspired. It's a total mess! I think some "spring" cleaning will help me work better. I always find stuff to get rid of and even more stuff that I'd forgotten I even had. That's always fun. I really would love to hear about your storage and organization solutions. Send me a picture or two of your craft space that I can post on my blog in exchange for some yummy blog candy.

Off to NYC Again...

Okay, I'm off to West Point again for a week. I'll share all the juicy details and pictures as usual. I'll even leave you with yet another card. I made it from the left overs from my last card. I had some printed chipboard stickers that came in my kit of the month. I thought they were pretty ugly, so I just peeled of the sticker, stuck it to some patterned paper, and filed the edges to make a new one. I'm really thinking I need to add a few random brads to the green paper or perhaps some small rub-ons here and there. I'm not sure. It just doesn't feel done. Any suggestions? I've made a few more cards, and I've even been sketching like crazy lately too. It just sucks I have to break my creative stride. Oh well, I can't wait to see the city again!

Supplies-Cardstock: Stampin' Up!, Lace Cardstock: KI Memories, Patterned Paper: Bo Bunny & Chatterbox, Chipboard: Scrapworks, Alpha Stickers: American Crafts & Carolee's Creations, Flower: Imaginisce, Piercing Template: Stampin' Up!

Seize the Day

I've been working so much lately, and when I'm not working I'm sleeping as much as possible. I feel like a zombie walking around here these past couple of weeks. Hopefully the end of summer will bring some relief. I'll be headed back up to NYC again on Tuesday, so I'll go yet another week without creating. Of course this happens right when I feel a super creative vibe come over me. I think it's time to clean out my scrap studio too. It's a super mess right now. I'm just not as productive in a messy space. I'll take pictures for you as soon as it's photo-ready though. Until then, here's the card you've already gotten a little peep of. I had one little piece of acetate, so I finally jumped on the bandwagon and made a clear card. The difficult part was finding a way to take a picture of it. I really had fun making this one. It's a little wacky, but so am I.

Sunday Funny

It's been a long time since I had a Sunday Funny posted on my blog, but after seeing how my good friend Beverly created a custom shipping area in her house I had to share my giggle fit. Check it out here.

Closet Makeover

My closet has been driving me nuts lately. I've hated it since I moved in here almost a year ago now. It's one of those long ones with two doors, so I can't access the long spaces on either side. I'd almost prefer having those ugly sliding doors that always fall off the tracks. At least I could get to everything then. I also hate my dresser. I put it together myself way back when I was first stationed here. I'm surprised it's lasted three years anyhow. The drawers don't work quite right, and it's not designed very practically. I've always been a bit obsessively compulsive about having all the same type of hangers (huggable hangers rock!) and that my clothes are hung in color order, by season, and by type. You'd think that would be enough organization, but not for ME! I really wish I had a before picture, but the only thing I was able to snap was a photo of Lilly "helping" me organize. She's like a cat that tries to squeeze itself right into the middle of whatever you're trying to get done.

I put all of my winter clothes, extra uniforms (I have TONS), and my overflowing tshirt collection each into their own big lidded storage tub and slid them into one of the long ends of the closet. I then moved all of my luggage and large bags into the other long end. Okay, I'm already bored with hearing myself describe my closet organization. I don't know why anyone other than myself would find this interesting, so here's a picture in short:

There's a lot that can't been seen in the picture, but you get the idea. I labeled all of the drawers with little metal rimmed tags tied on with embroidery thread. Even all of my undershirts for my uniform are rolled to the exact size of a dollar. We had to do that in Basic Training. (I guess I did learn a few things other than how to throw grenades and apply a high shine finish to a pair of combat boots.) All of Lilly's clothes are in the big blue drawer on the bottom left too. She'd be upset if she didn't have her own space in the closet. Only one of the bins on the top shelf is full. It's holding all of my jeans. I still have two empty drawers, an empty shoe cubbie, and room for six more pairs of shoes on the door caddie too! Perhaps it's time for some more shopping! I just didn't have a place for my polka dot rain boots, but that's okay. I like having them out anyhow. I wear them at first sight of looming clouds. I love funky shoes. I think I need a scrapbook page about that now. I've been working on some more cards for submissions again. I haven't created a thing since my first one was accepted over a month ago. I was afraid of being a one-hit-wonder, but the mojo is back! Here's a sneaky peek:

The Big Read

Shannon recommended this fun little ditty, so I'm giving it a try... “The Big Read" reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they’ve printed.”

• Look at the list and bold those you have read.
• Bold those you have read.
• Italicize the books you love.
• Strike out the books you have no intention of ever reading, or were forced to read at school and hated.
• Reprint this list in your own blog so we can try, and track down these people who’ve read less than six, and force books upon them.

1. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2. The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
3. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4. The Harry Potter Series - JK Rowling
5. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6. The Bible (Okay, okay, so I haven't read ALL of it)
7. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8. Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9. His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10. Great Expectations – Charles Dickens
11. Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12. Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14. Complete Works of Shakespeare (I've read quite a bit, but not "complete")
15. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16. The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18. Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19. The Time Traveller’s Wife
20. Middlemarch - George Eliot
21. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22. The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23. Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy (I read this in elementary school just because it was the biggest book in the library. I didn't have a clue what I was reading!)
25. The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams (This one is still on my coffee table. It was a disappointment.)
26. Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32. David Copperfield – Charles Dickens
33. Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34. Emma - Jane Austen
35. Persuasion - Jane Austen
36. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40. Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41. Animal Farm - George Orwell
42. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46. Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48. The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50. Atonement - Ian McEwan
51. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52. Dune - Frank Herbert
53. Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57. A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58. (I'm not sure what #58 was supposed to be. It's lost in blogland somewhere. If you know what it is be sure to share.)
59. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60. Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63. The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65. Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66. On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68. Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69. Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72. Dracula - Bram Stoker
73. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74. Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75. Ulysses - James Joyce
76. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77. Swallows and Amazons
78. Germinal - Emile Zola
79. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray (I honestly have only heard of the magazine!)
80. Possession - AS Byatt
81. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens (This was an annual holiday read)
82. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83. The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87. Charlotte’s Web - EB White
88. The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom (Oprah made me read this.)
89. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90. The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton
91. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92. The Little Prince – Antoine de St. Exupery
93. The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks
94. Watership Down - Richard Adams
95. A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole
96. A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute
97. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98. Hamlet - William Shakespeare (I love reading this kinda stuff)
99. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100. Les Miserables – Victor Hugo

36/100 I guess I'm ahead of the polls. It still doesn't seem like that much, but remember I was a SUPER nerdy kid. I also studied musical theater in college, and most of these books were turned into musicals or plays. I'm sure most of these books would have been a bit more enjoyable had they not been homework assignments. Right now I'm reading Open House by Elizabeth Berg. I picked it up in the airport where I do most of my reading. I almost always blindly choose one of Oprah's Book Club picks. I haven't found too many duds so far, so I think it's a safe bet. What book are you reading right now?

Happy Birthday

LILLY BELLE!!!

I'm Back

That was a very short trip. I wish I had stayed longer. I didn't even see the Statue of Liberty, although I did see a man dressed up like one. In fact, I saw many men dressed like women. You certainly won't see that around here. I was supposed to arrive in NYC around 6pm, but the plane ran out of fuel, so we had to head over to Baltimore for three hours. That was strange in itself. Once I arrived in the city it was already dark, and I still had an hour to drive before I reached our hotel near West Point. I hopped a shuttle to head over to the rental car place only to find out they were out of cars. This trip wasn't turning out too well already. I waited for quite sometime before they approached me to see if I was okay with having a Mustang. Uh, yes! That was just fine with me. The guy behind me got a mini van and wasn't too happy with me at all. I stuck out my tongue and just carried on. What a baby. I reached the hotel by midnight and went to bed as soon as I could kick my shoes off. I had to be up before the sun the next morning, so I wanted as many Zs as I could squeeze in. The next morning we headed over to the training area and conducted classes. My part was quite short, so I was out of there by 1000 and on my way into the city. The lady at the hotel desk gave me directions to the train station, so I hiked it about a quarter mile to the platform. She told me not to bother taking my car, so I didn't. It wasn't but a few minutes until the train came, but I had no idea where to get a ticket. The little train station was more like a bar than a ticket counter. I found two girls about my age to ask about the boarding procedures. They laughed at me the entire time, but were a help nonetheless. Turns out there is no ticket counter. It's all automated.It didn't take too long before we reached Grand Central. This is where the real fun began. There were so many people shoving and pushing. I was afraid I'd fall onto the tracks, so I kept to the center as much as possible. Once I got out of the terminal I couldn't figure out how to actually get out of the station. It was huge, and it seemed like every corridor lead to another platform. I found a group of three police officers, and said "How do I get out?" They all laughed to each other before one said "Walk out!". What a jerk. I've never gotten lost in the woods or on a land navigation course, so I figured it out. Once outside on the street I debated on trying my hand at hailing a cab, but decided against it. Instead I found my way down and around a few blocks to a hotel front where I picked up a double decker tour bus ride. It was one of those hop-on/hop-off things, so it sounded like a good way to see it all and get around at the same time. The first stop was Rockefeller Center, so I hopped off to get a few pictures and walk around. It was super crowded, and I wanted to get in so much more, so I hopped back on the next bus that pulled up to the curb. Before we reached our next stop I snapped a few dozen more pictures.I thought I was quite funny that the street signs were so plentiful that they just kept stacking them up and up and up... Do you see the one on the bottom says, "USE THE TIMES SQUARE SHUFFLE"? Ha! That's a lot of cars doing a lot of honking.We zoomed right passed Radio City Music Hall.

They call them "dirty water dogs" in the city. I doesn't exactly make me want oneCheck out the city's disposal system. Ew!

The tour guide said this was Trump Tower. It was my mother's only request to get a shot of it. I hopped off the bus again to walk around Central Park, but I ran into this massive list of park rules. Wow!

I was so excited to see Central Park, but once I was inside it didn't seem so great anymore. It was dirty, there were fences around everything, and it was full of rude people sprawled out eating bagged lunches while screaming on their cell phones. I didn't spend much time there before heading back to the bus stop.The next stop was Times Square! Of course I had to get off and walk around here. Has anyone seen the Legally Blonde movie? How about the musical? It's on my to-do list for sure. I'm headed back to NYC next month, and I've already planned on seeing it live. I'm super anxious to see who turns out to get the lead role. MTV has a reality show based on the audition process. Yes, I'm addicted. I also stopped for lunch and souvenirs. Mom would be disappointed if I didn't after all. Grandma needed a postcard, my sister was quite indecisive on what she wanted, and Mom asked for a mug. I picked up plenty of extra things too. I plan on making a super fun mini book using a postcard book as my album base... Anyhow, back to pictures.

Here's where the ball drops on New Year's Eve. Okay, back on the bus...

After growing up in wide open spaces it's difficult to imagine living like this.This is The Empire State Building.These things remind me of Petticoat Junction. Does anyone remember that show? It's super old school.Here's a picture of the subway entrance. I was too scared to go down there by myself.

This is the U.S. Custom House.And here's China Town. The last place the bus stopped before I ended the loops was the United Nations, so I jumped off. I was a little confused as to which gate was the entrance, so I just walked up to the first one. I started to ask the guard where I should go, but he quickly nipped my question to tell me they were closed for the day. I'm not sure why I didn't walk away at that moment, but I started to ask him questions about what the U.N. was. I already knew, but in an instant I had a school girl crush on him, so every bit of random babble spilled out of my mouth for the next five minutes. He told me he was about to change shifts, so I wrapped it up by asking for directions back to Grand Central. He said he was going that way, so he'd walk me there. I waited for a few minutes for him to change and meet me back at the gate all the while wondering what the heck I'm doing hanging out with a random stranger. I quickly called my sister and gave her his stats and full name. I did one of those mental snapshot thingies I do sometimes at his badge. I think the Army taught me that. I'm always gathering tiny details. It freaks me out sometimes. Perhaps they really did brainwash me in basic training. Anyhow, we stopped at a pizza place on the way to the train station where I again babbled my little head off. I asked him if it was normal behavior for him to befriend tourists like this. He confessed that it occasionally occurred. I appreciated the honesty although I still pretended I was the only one to captivate him this way. He then walked me to my platform before we said goodbye, but not before exchanging phone numbers and agreeing to meet again tomorrow. I know. I know. I'm crazy. The next day I once more had to be at work well before the sun rose. We needed to get in a 12-mile foot march before the West Point cadets could graduate. The work day was done by 1130. I suppose that's one good thing about waking up early. I had lots of time to explore and revitalize before heading back to the city. I went to the West Point Museum, and ate at a little dive that one of my friends recommended. On the way back to the hotel I stopped at a scenic look-out. It was crowded when I stopped, so I decided to mill around before I looked over the edge. The second I peered over the cliff a huge eagle soared up and loomed overhead. It was amazing. I'm an extremely patriotic person as you may know, so little things like parades, children waving flags, and the Star Spangled Banner really get to me.

Oh, and I squeezed in a little test driving of the Mustang, too!

I took a little nap and shower before heading back into the city.

I had about 30 minutes left before meeting my gorgeous guard again, so I camped out on a bench in a little park around the corner while I read a book. Once we met we decided to go over to Jekyll and Hyde for dinner. It was across town, so we took the subway. Man, was it packed. There were some amazing dancers down there though. They were just kids, but they knew exactly how to get the crowd's applause and money. Once we arrived at the restaurant we were greeted by a loopy maid and an arrogantly odd butler who jumped from table to table (sometimes literally) spreading creepy comedy tidbits. We had a good time. We then went to a birthday party for one of his close friends where we hung out for a while before heading back to the train station once more. It was nearing one o'clock in the morning, and there were only two more trains I could catch. I really didn't want to leave. I was having the time of my life. We exchanged email addresses before I reached for a hug. He kissed my cheek. I convinced myself again that I was the only one he'd randomly sought adventures before with while wishing simultaneously that my cheek wasn't the only thing to touch his lips in that moment. I boarded the train headed back to the hotel. I had to be on my way back to the airport by 0900, so I packed up all of my things and collapsed into bed. My travels back to Tennessee were uneventful compared to the previous parts of my trip. I can't wait to go back.