thursday . . .

My list of "to-dos" is as big as my growing belly . . .

* re-organizing rooms & closets in the house to get ready for the baby (in the process I have created "messes" in almost every room)

* preparing for Thanksgiving - I'm hosting (I know - crazy pregnant lady - what am I thinking???? No worries people - Boston Market is handling this meal :) This is definitely not the year to try & figure out the whole "cooking the turkey" thing)

* Christmas shopping - 21 adults/kids - a slight dent has been put into it - but meeting my self-imposed December 1st deadline is gonna be tough . . .

* scrapbook assignments - surprisingly I have been keeping up pretty decently - I have pushed the deadlines with a few assignments but all in all - I have been okay . . .

* trying to be a good mommy - this one is hard because I am exhausted . . . luckily Ryan is a pretty good kid & he enjoys helping mommy with decorating and organizing and shopping :)

* trying to be a good friend, sister, daughter - sometimes yes & sometimes no - feeling pulled in a thousand directions these days - trying to be as helpful as possible to everyone - have had a few meltdowns when I can't - keeping it together though :)

* trying to be a good wife - this is pretty much not happening :) I have told my hubby the old Julie will be back sometime next spring/summer - see him then :)

I have tried to blog a million times in the past week but every time I have sat in front of my computer I've fallen asleep - the screen must be mesmerizing me :) I spent the weekend at a scrapbook retreat with my mom & sister - so fun!!!! I finished 3 single page layouts & 1 double page layout - pretty good for me - last year I only did 2 so at least I was ahead of the game this time :) I am an extremely slow scrapper . . .

BTW - I have LOTS of scrappy to share - please don't be offended if this sounds like a check-off list - secretly it kind of is :) I don't want to miss mentioning anything & with this pregnancy brain - well - you never know :)

My Creative Scrapbook:

We are in round 2 of the 3 month sketch contest over in the forum - here is the second sketch due by December 15th . . .

You can find all the details HERE - check out this prize being offered - WOWZERS!!!!

In addition, my regular monthly sketch challenge that I already mentioned here last week is running through December 10th - check out all the details here.

SEI:

My first post is up on the SEI blog!!! I worked with their gorgeous Moonrise Collection - perfect for some of my recent fall pics - here is my first layout of Ryan at a local fall festival . . .

A close-up on the title tag that features some of their gorgeous papers & awesome die-cuts!!! The "Autumn" was cut from SEI patterned paper using my Slice die-cutting machine :)

I love this next layout because of the adorable pic of Ryan & the fabulous quote by A. A. Milne included in the SEI die-cuts :)

The stars were cut using my Slice (yes I really am breaking into my tools people!!!). To attach them to the layout I stitched down the center, then folded them in half - resulting in some fun, dimensional stars!!!

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this quote . . .

I just sent off my December projects using their Kris Kringle line & I can't wait to share them with you next month - the papers & embellishments are so fun - feel free to check them out here!!!

A Page 4 All Seasons:

Lots to share here - when I first hooked up with Shyloh, the owner, I was only going to be a guest designer. She had sent me out some Cosmo Cricket & My Mind's Eye goodies to play with

- here is a single pager I did with the Cosmo Cricket Early Bird collection earlier this summer . . .

Love the simplicity of this one :)

I also completed 2 double page layouts & guess what - both are up for sale on her site. Remember these will be pre-cut & ready to assemble - just add in adhesive & your own pics!!!

First up - "Grow" using Early Bird by Cosmo Cricket . . .

And, "Together" using Meadowlark by My Minds Eye . . .

Check out the details & pricing HERE.

Also, I have pics of my December He Said layout up for sale as well . . . this layout features Echo Park's Merry Christmas line . . .

Click HERE to become a subscriber of the He Said page kit club :)

I still have one more December layout that will be up for sale soon as well as a Year in Review mini album kit - as soon as they are posted on the site I will share them with all of you :)

Work In Progress Kit Club:

As you may have seen on earlier posts, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to guest design for Work In Progress Kit Club this month. I created this additional layout "Rainy Day Love" using the November kit . . .

These Bella Blvd clouds are to die for . . . so cute . . . the title was cut from my Cricut (look at me busting into my tools - right???)

I punched these sunbursts from my new Martha Stewart punch - a fun overlapping border & super easy to create!!!! Great use of scrap patterned paper too :)

The Scrap Room:

The new sketch for November is up on their blog . . .

This month's prize is full of Crate Paper yumminess so be sure to play along!!! Check out all the details HERE!!

The Paper Variety:

I was asked to create a sketch for this fun challenge site - it's a 2 pager & their DT has some fab examples up on their blog!!!

They are giving an awesome prize away for this challenge - the November monthly kit from Scrapctera Kit Club . . .

Phew - I think that is all the scrappy I have to share right now - but I do have more to share in the coming week :) Busy, busy, busy . . .

I have been doing a little shopping recently . . . so many awesome scrappy goodies out there . . . thought I would share the scrappy goodness with my FABULOUS readers so . . . is anyone interested in a NEW Cosmo Cricket Circa 1934 collection kit????

This includes 12 patterned papers (that's 2 of each kind), a borders sheet, an elements sheet, and cardstock stickers - FUN, FUN, FUN!!!!! Just leave a comment below :) Have a FAB Wednesday . . off to watch Law & Order :)

ttyl - julie :)