jump

Hello! :) It feels so good to scrap fairly consistently again. I recently found a challenge site called The Memory Nest. I discovered this challenge blog/store just by clicking on and leaving a comment on a layout that was posted on the CMS blog. I did a little digging and discovered that there was a Summer DT call going on and decided to try my luck. This site features two challenges each month; one a sketch and one a color- both of which are my favorite challenges. If nothing else I have found another friendly source of inspiration.

This is the layout I created for the design team call:

supplies:

cs: Recollections

pp and stickers: Simple Stories Vintage Bliss (love this collection!)

and a doily (again- my last 4 layouts have featured them, time to mix it up a bit), some bling, ribbon and twine

chipboard letters: Making Memories

 

This was the sketch that we needed to use:

I tend to struggle with smaller photos, but I have been wanting to scrap these photos for awhile now and this sketch was perfect.

thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a beautiful day/evening! :)

Camera Shy- CMS challenge #38

Hello! :) Here is my layout for Color Me Scrappy challenge #38. This layout combines several of my favorite things: stitching, rolled flowers and a banner. So many of my layouts feature these, but I am addicted to them.

supplies:

pp: MME and Crate

stickers: Pink Paislee

 

here is the serene color pallet for this challenge:

 

and the twist was to use misting or paint.

 

If you haven't yet, go check out the challenge! I am always inspired by the pallets and enjoy the fun little twists that are added.

 

On a side note- I have been gushing about how well Ashlyn has been doing lately. Well, we hit a bump in the road today. Her blood counts are very low, not low enough to land her in the hospital, but low enough to be very concerned, especially as the labs were drawn prior to her infusion, and the Remicade will cause them to fall even more. Frustratingly enough her SED rate (inflammation level) continues to climb which could mean several things. She will get a recheck on her labs in two weeks and hopefully there will be some improvement. If not, we could have a game changer here. I am crushed, especially since it is so hard to hear "bad" news when for the first time in years everything was positive. I am just going to continue to keep moving forward and maintaining a positive outlook. I just pray that this is not the beginning of another set back, especially if it means we have to scope her again and possibly change the course of treatment (medication wise). Whatever the outcome, we WILL get past this. Ashlyn is a fighter.

 

God Bless!

Smile Big

Hi! Happy World IBD Day! Before I share my newest layout I want to share a photo of Ashlyn. I took this two weeks ago just because it was so nice to see her beautiful face without an ng tube. :) She has chubby steroid-induced cheeks with a nice pink color and a sparkle in her eye. Something that we all missed for so long. After seeing her for 14 months with a tube coming out of her nose and taped to her cheek I still cannot believe that it is gone! It has been out for 4 weeks now and I just pray that she continues to improve and we will not have to replace it. It will be nice for her to be a kid this summer.
Here is my brave, beautiful Crohn's fighter:

 

 

I was bored the other day and stumbled upon a brand new challenge site called ScrapStuffz "Inspired by". Currently there is a call for designers and as I am trying to get back into a scrappy groove I thought why not. I can commit to one layout a month, so I decided to toss my hat into the ring. It appears that there have only been a few applicants, so I encourage you to head on over to the site and check out the challenge so this site can get up and running (as well as enter a submission to be a part of a new challenge blog).

 

My layout was inspired by the dots/circles on the first square, the pink in the second, the stripes in the third square, and the pastel colors.

 

 

supplies:

pp- Simple Stories and MME (butterflies are Basic Grey and MME)

stickers: Simple Stories

doily

twine

dots: MME

flowers: Petaloo and Prima (not sure about the white enamel flowers)

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Simple Pleasures- CMS challenge #37

Hello! :) I got sidetracked again. lol
The past two months have brought numerous positive changes to us (finally!). Patience has paid off big time. Ashlyn has finally responded to the Remicade infusions (insert ecstatic happy dance here :)). Most people see/feel results after the 2nd and/or 3rd infusions; it took her 5 for us to notice anything positive. She goes in for #6 on Monday so I am expecting even more improvement in her energy/pain levels. We also changed her diet drastically within the week of her receiving infusion #5 (she is 100% gluten free, fructose free, dairy free in addition to nut free as she has both peanut and tree nut allergies, white bean-free and pea-free. This has by far been the single most difficult task I have undertaken- it is HARD and somewhat frustrating to feed this kid, but the struggles are well worth it.) so that could have also been a huge factor, but whatever it is, it is working and my sweet girl is the healthiest she has been in over 5 years! She has a lot more energy now. We don't have to put her in a cart when we go shopping, she doesn't have to take a nap after a simple task such as getting up to use the restroom or to eat. She can go downstairs to watch a movie or play the x Box- something she hasn't done in over 2 years. She still has a lot of recovery, but every day she seems to do something new and it is the very best feeling. It's honestly like having a 13 year-old toddler- that is how I can describe it to make it understandable. My heart is overflowing with happiness!

With her health improved, I was able to land a "real" job. I started to work for ProBuild almost 5 weeks ago- it's basically a lumber yard. Never in my life would I have pictured myself working in a lumber yard. lol And I don't have a desk job. I am not sure how to describe my role other than I do a little bit of everything that someone needs me to do, from paperwork and data entry to counting materials to scheduling deliveries even helping a customer load lumber into his truck. It is very physical and mentally challenging, but I love it! I make good money, have steady hours and learn so many new things each day. The opportunities are endless with this new job and I cannot recall a time that I have loved a job as much as I do this one.

Life is awesome!!!

So, I made some time to scrap. I am so bummed that I missed the deadline for the Color Me Scrappy challenge #37, but hopefully I will get the next one in on time. I don't know which I adored more- the color scheme or the adorable inspiration.

Here is my layout:

 

the challenge was to use this beautiful color palette:

                                       along with this sketch:

 

I am looking forward to creating with the next challenge!

 

Thanks for stopping by! God Bless!

 

My first layout in months! CMS #33

Hi everyone! :) Did you miss me? I sure missed scrapping and am ready to dig in and play with paper again.

 

I did manage to complete a few classes during the last 6 months, and quite successfully as well. I do have my final in Algebra tomorrow, which I am not sure how that is going to go, but aside from that I am done for now. I have maintained a 4.0 GPA this entire quarter. I am so proud of myself, but it has taken a lot of work on energy (and several glasses of wine along the way, too. lol).

 

In addition to school, Ashlyn has kept me quite busy as well. In the past 6 months she has undergone 2 colonoscopies/endoscopies (one in October and another early in February). She has had multiple other tests and x-rays and doctor visits along the way. In October her Crohns had gotten worse yet again, as confirmed by tests and scoping, so another treatment plan was called for. She now has Remicade infusions every 7-8 weeks. She has been slow to respond to the Remicade,(hence the fact that he had 2 scopings so close together), but it appears to be working. Finally. Something that is helping her for the first time in 2 years. She still has active disease in a few areas, and some new areas of inflammation, but they are mild and overall she has little inflammation in areas that were quite infected by the disease. Unfortunately it has caused not so pleasant side effects, but we have to go with what we know is working now, because there is a chance that in the future it will not. She is taking high doses of steroids to counter act some of the negative effects of the Remicade, but these also come with issues. it's all really just a big circle of things and we just have to keep making adjustments as neccessary to keep her as healthy as possible. This is what works for us now, so this is what we do. I have become quite good at nailing down her symptoms and advocating her needs, and her doctors and I have a nice teamwork approach that is helpful all around.

 

 

I could probably type endlessly here, but I think I will just share a layout I created today. I have so much to share, but there is plenty of time for that.

 

 Ahhh.... the sweet feel of paper and an inspirational challenge- just what the doctor ordered for me. lol

 

One of my favorite challenge sites is Color Me Scrappy. It was one of the first places I went to for inspiration after six + months of not creating.

 

The color scheme for CMS Challenge #33 is so fresh and pretty! I tried to keep my layout a bit on the lighter side.

 

 

(please forgive teh horrible quality of this photo. I do not have a camera any longer and Ashlyn was helpful enough to take a picture with her iPod for me. A least the colors are true- it's just a bit on the grainy/not so clear side.)

 

Thanks for stopping by! I look forward to catching up with everyone again. :)

 

 

 

 

CMS #10 {a natural beauty}

Hello out there in cyberland! :)

I have been seriously neglecting my blog. I do have several layouts and cards to share, I just haven't carved out the time to blog. Actually, I think it's more about trying to soak up the last of Summer with the kids. We aren't doing anything other than hanging out at home, but we are keeping busy spending this last stretch of time together before the hustle and bustle of school begins in less than a week.

It's been at least a month (maybe more) since I have participated in a challenge on the Color Me Scrappy site, but today I made it a goal to go check out the challenge since the deadline is tomorrow (or tonight?). I have missed playing along with the great color combos and this layout came together so quickly once I started pulling papers to match the colors.

here is the color palette:

This is not a combo I would have put together on my own, but they are so beautiful together! Once again I love the end result of my layout.

I'll (try) to be back soon with some more layouts. ;) Take care!

Got some layouts to share and big news for me!

Hello! I'm back. Did you miss me? ;) lol The past few weeks have been very busy and have seemed to fly by. I really havn't scrapped much, but I do have a few things to share today. I created these two layouts  several weeks ago for the My Scraps & More Got Talent II contest.

this is for challenge #1:

and this is for challenge #2:

Ashlyn had an appointment with her GI doc in Seattle a couple of weeks ago. At this point she is holding steady. For the first time in a long time we didn't have any bad news. yay! While I do not want to focus on the negative, we didn't get any good news either- OK, the fact that her body is accepting the Methotrexate the way it should at this point is good news. ;) We just need to continue to give her her weekly injections and go forward. We really will not know how the Methotrexate is working for her until we remove her from the steroids, but that won't be until November. We are just building it up now. She's got 4 more weeks for the Methotrexate to fully kick into her system and maybe we'll see something more dramatic then. It's basically a waiting game now.

I have some BIG news for myself! I have decided that it is time to go back to school and finally earn a degree/certificate! I have felt this pull to do this for the past 2 years and everything finally worked out for me. I will be taking it slow as I still have to care heavily for Ashlyn, but I am going to do this! EEK!!!

I am super excited, yet nervous and hope and pray that I have not taken too much of a load on top of what I have already. I am signed up for one class now and am #1 on the waitlist for a math class, which I was told is highly probable that I will get in, although it might not be until school has started. My first day is September 24th.

Oh- I have decided that I am going to work toward becoming a Pharmacy Tech. The certificate program only takes 3 quarters if you go full time, but that is just not feasable for me at this time (and several of the classes were unavailable to me) so I have decided that I am going to work toward both the certificate and AAS. I do have to "catch up" in math, so I will need to take pre-algebra and then algebra to qualify for the math class I need. These will count toward my AAS, as well as the Phsychology class I am starting out with. I really hope I am able to slip into the math class, because that is the one I really need.

This is a huge leap of faith for me, and it's going to take a lot of time and work, but once I get a groove, I know I will be successful. I have given up all my design team commitments as I will not want the extra stress of having a deadline to meet, especially when I first begin, but I am still planning to scrap as much as I can.

I'll be back with some more scrappy projects soon. :)

Have a beautiful day!