Christmas Dessert!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas. I was not really feeling the spirit of Christmas but as the morning got closer and closer, I started to feel better about it. Of course, I had to be in good spirits for my little Aida. She has been singing Christmas songs all December. That always had me smiling. As she has gotten older and understands it more, we have been spending more time at home for Christmas. This year I got the three of us some pajamas to sit around in on Christmas Eve while we ate dinner and watched movies together. Little did I know, but there were some changes in our plans that kind of affected the 'mood' of the holiday...I guess I'll say it like that...lol! There will be some changes in the new year that will take some getting used to...but I will discuss that in the coming week or so.

Just a few more days

Christmas is not far away, and I still have presents to wrap and a couple to buy. All of that plus a bit of news and I just cannot seem to find enough time to scrap the way I want. My 4-year old seems to think she can go to sleep as late as I, so I miss out on doing a few things I like before heading to bed. I have no idea what she is going to do when it is time for big school (as she calls it...lol!). I have a few pages to share from this month. Normally, I wouldn't start scrapping my December photos, but this year I decided to use my most current photos first so that I would not be behind on getting my album done for 2012. I have definitely got to catch up with Project Life. Maybe that will be what I tackle more of them in the next few weeks.

The Elf as George of the Jungle

Just quick share today of the little Elf that has invaded our space. Aida normally is not very awake when she is going to daycare, but this morning she was up to look for her elf.  Her reaction was a little different this time. She kind of half smiled and was like "Eh..crazy elf!"...and walked off...lol!!!

Day 2: R & R Elf Style

This morning my daughter woke up looking for her elf. She ran straight to her room and discovered he was not there. Then the questions came. "Where is he?" "Mommy did he leave" "Is he coming back" I let Aida know that we had to find him because he was supposed to be here to watch her but it seems he is up to something. She laughed and told me that she would look for him. So, she eats her breakfast and forgets all about it and then afterwards, she's like "hey, where is my elf." She finally gets to looking around again and she found him. Aida laughed and shouted "He's silly!! I found that silly elf. He has my marshmallows!"

And...the Elf makes an entrance!

It's the first day of December and the fun has started. I had Aida to put take her breakfast plate back into the kitchen. As she comes upstairs, she is about to run into my room when she realizes an elf has got a little comfy on her bed. She looks back at me and goes "Mommy he's here!" I just smiled at her. I read the note he'd left her and it seems she has a mystery to solve. She really loved that part. Her first clue is a Christmas tree. I told her that if she can solve the mystery she will get a special gift. She is so excited. I asked her what she would be naming her elf and she chose the name : Shishya. I have no idea where she got this name from, but it's her choice and it was the first one she came up with...and quickly too...like it's a normal name. Lol!

The Days

I cannot believe how quickly December has gotten here. I just realized this is the last day of November ( well, almost...as I am typing it is literally 40 minutes away..lol!). My daughter was sick this past weekend, so we did not get a chance to put up the tree. I was soooo ready to officially introduce Aida to her elf and read the story and all of that...but, this weekend works fine too! I think this will be fun. I have not set a plan for each day...I am just going to go with the flow. I was thinking of him leaving her letter clues to make a word that will give her the opportunity to open one gift early on Christmas Eve, if she can sound out the word. We will see what happens...I am just excited! I am about to head for the bed but first wanted to share a photo that was taken this past weekend of my dd. I love this little cardigan she is wearing. We got it from the clearance rack at JCPenney's a few weeks ago and of course, I had to get a photo of her wearing it.

That Sketch

Yesterday's sketch at the Bella Blvd. blog caught my eye. I had just downloaded the Holiday Idea Notebook from Digital Design Essentials and I knew I had to use that sketch to create a page. More and more paper scrap booking layouts have been catching my interest, and this sketch was calling me. I only used items from the Idea Notebook and I used one paper from the Beyond Measure paper pack and changed the color up just a bit to match the yellow in the Idea Notebook papers and elements. Did that make sense at all?? In my head, it made sense...lol! Anyway...here is my page using some photos of Aida from last year in a dress that her father picked out for her...

Black Friday Sales!

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving and time with their family. This year we decided to stay home and spend the day with just the three of us. It was nice to not have chaos and to do things on my own time during the day. I was able to style my hair, cook dinner, wash some clothes, create some layouts and "talk" to Santa about a few things a certain little person requested. My stress level was so low, and that meant, no migraine- which is always my ultimate goal.

That Time of Year

With all the Christmas kits debuting in the scrap booking world, I cannot help but get excited about the holiday season ahead. I am ashamed to say I still have plenty of Christmas photos to scrap from last year. I am not sure if it was because I took so many photos and I did not want to edit them, or I was just waiting for the perfect kit; there are a few photos I did not touch. So far- my two favorite stores have some amazing Christmas goodies. :) I tend to lean more towards the Christmas kit with traditional colors - red, white, green, but I love any good Christmas kit that inspires me to create a layout for my photos.

Bright & Early

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Digital Scrapbooking weekend. I know I did. I did not shop too much. I spent quite bit of time in the TLP forums and scrapping a few pages. I really need to catch up on my 2011 album. I have some print credits but have yet to use them. I need to make this next batch worth it. lol! I think that's why I sit back and re-make my pages from the year before. I am so happy with my 2012 pages that I need to feel the same about any I print now.

Happy DSD!!!

Yes- my favorite time of the year has finally arrived! Sales, games, challenges, chats, giveaways, facebook/blog hops...every thing you could imagine is happening in one weekend in celebration of digital scrapbooking. This is my third year and I am just as excited! There are so many things going on right now. Before I bombard you with a few pages, I thought I'd list a few "hot" spots to check out.

Love to Scrap

I usually do not stay with things for long-as far as commitments go, but I was thinking today of something that I have yet to give up. The one hobby I have stayed with the longest: scrap-booking. My preference will always be digital, but I have yet to get bored with creating layouts. Today's post will be short and sweet. I have had quite a tiring week at work and right now, I just want to create some pages. My favorite printer (Persnickety Prints) had a sale last week and I bought some print credits. Definitely need to get my 2011 book completed. There are photos I have yet to scrap and some I want to "re"-scrap just because I have a kit that I find more fitting. I try my best not to do that, but if I am not completely happy with a page, I cannot waste my money or time printing it. My 2012 album- ahhh..I never know what to do. I have actually printed some of my 2012 layouts already.....I could not resist seeing them in my hands...and I love them. Both of these albums are 12 x 12 and I have to say....I am pretty sure I will be able to see everything on these pages when I am older. So with that, I just want to share a few pages.

Ice Cream in September

Just a quick share of Miss Aida. This photo is from September of this year. It shocks me...just a little...that it was warm enough to have ice cream in September, but it is Alabama.
-

Our Minnie Mouse

Today I let Aida try on her Minnie Mouse costume and take a few photos outside. I decided not to buy one of the store costumes. Every one she has had, she has ripped or torn or snagged the same day. I scoured the net until I found this adorable Bonnie Jean dress. The Minnie ears are from our Disney trip and the tights and red shoes are from Old Navy. I could barely get her out of the dress and shoes. She loves them both!  I was nervous about what size to order, but she pretty much wears a 5 and it was a perfect fit for her.

Project Life: Days 61 - 67

Yes- I am posting a very late project life page...lol! To give you an idea of how behind I am, today is day 288.... umm hmm...lol! I am still going though. :) Here is my latest page:

Mix It Up

Every now and then I pose a question to myself- usually when I am complacent and feel I have not "grown" lately in my creative hobby. I ask myself "what is my scrapping style." You could go to any site, forum or search and find many things to read about the different styles. I never felt like I fit in one box. It really depends on my mood. Sometimes I want more sharp & clean lines and other days I want effortless vintage and there are some days I just want to put things on page and go with the flow with an idea in mind. As far as colors go, I have and will use them all. I have had this crazy color idea since I was in Kindergarten at a Catholic school. At home, I always had the big box of Crayola crayons- 96 count and larger. The more colors, the more excited I was to color. Well, my school talked a lot about God - we had religion class and attended Mass at least once a week. I remember there was a section in our book talking about God made the trees, the sky, the animals, etc. That made me think.."hmm, God is everywhere...he sees everything...and he made everything." I took that idea and ran with it. I thought that I HAD to LOVE every color of crayon because God made the rainbows, which meant that he made the colors. This...right here...made me afraid and from that point on, I always made sure to get use of every single crayon I had and NEVER say, there was a color I did not like. It is kind of weird now that I think of it, but I am happy to be color friendly. :)

She loves Dora & Diego

Tuesday - Today was okay. Actually it was slightly better and worse than okay. How is that possible? Well...there are highs and lows to every day...lol! I don't know. I am just rambling. I tried to think of what to post because I have not been in the best of moods, so it is hard to write a post or create a scrapbook page when I do not at least feel 'content.' Nothing too much going on in my world. I went to see my parents this past weekend. Dad is doing good. I don't tell him or anyone (guess I am now) that I say a prayer for him when he crosses my mind. Cancer has been a recurring theme through my life- seeing family members go through it. It scares me. I have my theory on where the entire "cancer" thing came from, but I will not speak on it now. This is breast cancer awareness month. My mother and two of her sisters have been dealt that card to deal with in their own ways and each are doing well and cancer-free today. My grandmother passed from having breast cancer when I was a few months old. I hate that I did not get to meet her just because of all the stories of her I have heard. At the same time, I know that all things happen for a reason- even if we do not know or agree with it, there is a reason.

The Good Stuff

It is Monday and today was a wonderful day, except the fact that my baby was sick. She has a cold and had a slight fever, which is thankfully gone down now. She was just miserable all day. I cooked her favorite breakfast and lunch and she would not eat it. She had pineapples, goldfish and juice for the most of the day. I think she was playing me though- like she knew just what to do to be able to eat junk food all day (lol!). I really do not think she was playing though. Sunday night she moaned in her sleep so bad that I had to lay down early just to quiet her down. This evening she was up more and talking and playing a little. She even ate a bowl of Cheerios. Hopefully, all will be fine tomorrow.

Our Home Town

It's already Sunday. Where did the time go? I was able to get a couple of pages done since Friday. It seems like every time I sit down to create it is either the internet distracting me or I have mommy duties to fulfill. So, today I am declaring a scrapping marathon. :) More of my favorite shows are starting their newest seasons today: Once Upon a Time, Revenge, and Homeland. I have the DVR set, just in case I forget to tune in on time. I just know I will forget somehow. Now, I have a few pages I want to share before I get back to scrapping away the weekend.

Time-2-Scrap/Aida's Hair

I have had quite a weekend. Scrapping...browsing the internet....styling hair and all of that goodness. First, I will share the photos of my daughter's hair. I usually take about 2 hours on a Saturday or Sunday to wash her hair and put in mini twists. For me, 2 hours is not a lot of time because the twists are usually small and I let her keep them up for two weeks. She has eczema, so I co-wash her twists 2 or 3 times during that time period. I wash her hair with the same products I use for myself - these shampoos: Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Moisture Retention Shampoo, Shea Moisture Organic Coconut & Hibiscus Curl & Shine Shampoo. KeraCare Cleansing Cream; or these conditioners:Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose Conditioner, Aubrey Organics GPB Conditioner or Cantu Shea Butter Moisturizing Rinse Out Conditioner. For a leave-in conditioner, I have am in love with the Giovanni Direct Leave-in Conditioner (the regular version or weightless moisture). I usually catch it on sale at Vitacost.com and buy 2 or 3 bottles at a time. When twisting her hair, I rub Amla & Olive Heavy Cream by Qhemet Biologics (QB) and Coconut Oil on the section of hair I am working on and I start parting small pieces with my fingers for twisting. I dab my fingertips in Aethiopika Hydrate & Twist Butter by QB to seal the twist.

All About the Words

We had a long rough night Thursday and Friday was pretty much the same thing. Aida has been waking up every night around 2 or 3 am to go potty. No matter how much juice, or milk she has or does not have before bedtime, it never fails that she wakes up at the same time. Thursday night she had a tummy ache and would not stay in bed. I hate when she has tummy issues; I hate seeing her in pain or uncomfortable.  Thankfully she was okay by the time she got settled in at daycare. I called to check on her a few hours after dropping her off and she was fine and playing as usual. When I arrived to pick her up, she just screamed "Mommy" and ran to me...almost made me lose my balance. Little moments like that keep reminding me of how much I am not ready for her to attend school next year (lol!).

Random Thoughts

Been a moment since I have posted. Decided to update my blog once again. Certain things I am just not good at making a decision about. What I like one day could be something totally different the next day. I am going to try to blog more often. I used to blog (online) all the time in college. I had a couple of blogs that were just about random things I dealt with day to day. I have always felt like an outsider when I was school, so the journal keeping started when I was about in the 4th or 5th grade. It has never stopped. I can think more clearly if I can go back and read the words. I will tell anyone that I am not a good listener. I know it is true. It was very hard for me to listen during school. I would read at home either before class or after when it was time to do my homework (lol!). Somehow I still made the honor roll. I am a visual learner 100%. I do not like watching video tutorials because I just do not listen well. Write up and let me use the search function (ctrl + f) and we will be good!

Henna + Indigo = Loving my natural hair...even more!

So this post is a little bit different. I mentioned using Henna on my hair and have yet to post about my experience. I especially want to document for myself as a reference ....and I definitely need to do it while it is fresh on my mind. I am going to start with a little background on my natural hair journey.

When I was about 5 or 6 years old, my mom started perming my hair. I can remember getting it pressed a couple of times, but mostly remember getting that burning white stuff put on my scalp. I absolutely hated it. As I got older and was going to the hair salon, I watched our stylist (and wonderful family friend) as she did my mom's hair. I wanted to learn. I always knew that I needed to nurture my hair before it could look the way I wanted it to. With chemicals, a little extra care is needed...but all hair needs "special" care. By the 11th grade, our stylist moved to another state and I started doing my own hair. I learned quickly that cheap shampoos were no good. I had to persuade my parents that letting me spend money on decent hair products I was saving them money. '$60 for a hair product bundle that'd last me 3 months or so' vs '$30-40 per hair salon trip.' Of course, the product bundle won out. I loved experimenting with or without relaxers. I started blowing my hair straight and just wearing it big with a head band. My hair has been black, brown, red and blonde. All the colors in the world did not have me satisfied with my hair.



When I was pregnant with my daughter in 2007, I had not had a perm in about 2 months. I decided, no more chemicals. I continued to flat-iron, blow dry and roller set my hair if I was tired of twisting it. I started transitioning using the Organix shampoos and conditioners and using Elasta QP Mango Butter, Olive Oil, and Cantu Shea Butter leave-in to twist my hair. I flat-ironed my hair sometimes and had micro braids and twists. It was not until November 2011 that I was finally and completely free. I let my guy cut off the final permed ends. At first I did not want to because I did not know what to do with such short hair. I had at least 3 inches of length, so I kept doing the twist outs. They just got easier and easier and I started seeing how coily my hair was...and I fell in love. I have major scalp issues (seborrhoeic dermatitis) and since I have not used perms, I do not have that problem any more. Goodbye sore, raw scalp....good bye flaky forehead...I absolutely am happy I made this choice.  Here are a few photos of my hair this year before my Henna experience:

The Days Behind Me

This has been quite a weekend. I took the entire Saturday to Henna  (+ Indigo)  my hair. I will have an entire blog post on this tomorrow hopefully.  It was a lonnngggg day...all I will say for now. Sunday we took our daughter Aida to the McWane Science Center to see Dora and Diego. Photos will come soon. I spent so much time on my hair that I was exhausted. I ended up styling it in mini twists and I love it!! Hope I can keep it up at LEAST two weeks because it took me about 11 hours to twist all this hair. Ugh!! I know right...that was half a day..lol! Right now I just wanted to share a few of my latest scrapbook pages.

The Good and the Bad

Today was an okay day.  I dropped Aida off at daycare and she was actually awake, which is rare.  No matter how early I have her in bed, she never goes to sleep until around 10:30 or 11:00 at night. There were a few people that actually warned me about this happening. I am a night owl and so is her dad. Every now and then she will admit that is sleepy...it is not very often. Anyway, I am anxious for the weekend. I placed an order for some Fresh Moroccan Henna and Indigo. I really want my hair to be dark again and I want to do some mini twists. I really want to try to wear a protective style at least for a couple of weeks to give my hair a break. I plan on doing some layouts/blog posts about my natural hair journey. I am glad I got rid of the rest of my permed ends last November. My hair is the same length as it was before and still growing. I am ELATED about that of course.

Decisions

This weekend has been quite uneventful....and I welcomed it with WIDE OPEN arms.  I really needed some rest after this week.  I felt much more tired than normal and just did not feel like going anywhere. Plus, my guy had to work, so it'd be just us girls on Saturday. We did a little shopping. Of course, I had to pick up my copy of the Hunger Games movie. I actually enjoyed the movie, even after reading the books. The movie seemed rushed in some places but overall it was good; I did not expect to see each and every scene that I thought was important so that kind of ruled out some of the disappointment for me. I have not watched it at home yet, so that could change...lol!!

Love this lens!

As usual- I was scanning through my many of photos looking for a couple to use on a scrapbook page--and I came across a set of January of this year. I keep saying I am going to do a then and now photo post just to see how I have progressed but when I look through all the photos I have taken, I am discouraged by the hits & misses. I do love the photos I am sharing...something I have not said in a while.  I used the Canon 50 mm f/1.4 ..and I have to say...I love the creamy bokeh of this lens (almost as much as the 85 mm).

My Little Student

Today I really just have a page to share. I am worn out and a very bad migraine started as I was getting ready to leave work today. I could barely see. It was like my eyes were have a "dropped call" I guess you can say. I could see but it was pretty sketchy. I remember the first time it happened and I freaked out. I was working part time in Medical Records of a local hospital; there were only 2 of us there on the weekend and it was pretty early in the morning (before 7 am) - had to be there at 6 am I believe. I was sitting down waiting on the computer to load and all of a sudden I was having trouble seeing. I just laid my head down and asked myself and God if this really could be happening. I was really scared...had no idea what to do. A few minutes later, things started to clear up but I started developing a monster of a headache. That was the first time I ever remembered having that much vision trouble with a migraine. Scarryy!

85 degrees....in my bedroom!

It was a rough night for me Monday and today was not any better. We had a band of bad thunderstorms that started after midnight or so. I had just gotten in bed about half an hour before midnight, so I was not completely asleep. The thunder was rolling and clapping so hard plus the lightning was lighting up the room....I could not sleep! I tried to turn away from the window but that did not help. I end up having a headache after 5 hours of half sleep. Our lights went out in the middle of the night. I have no idea for how long because I was half sleep and could not see anything without my glasses. I just know they came on in time before it started to get hot. Then I get up at 5:30 for work and the storms are still just as bad. I see the crazy lightning going on and watch the news- they are saying to stay indoors. Soo..that's when I said- I would just stay home. There was a lot of flooding in my area. Most of the day it was pretty dark outside and on-and-off rain, but the heaviest was in the morning hours. By the time it was 12:30 in the afternoon, I realized our AC unit was not blowing cool air. Since we rent, I called the building manager...got a voicemail as always. For me- that drives me up a wall!! I will leave a voicemail but can you at least return the call just to let me know you heard the message and are working on getting the problem fixed. Usually the freon runs out once a year and we are without air for a day, and they have it filled and blowing nice and cool the next day. I hope that is the same this time because this has been pure hell. Thought I could scrap and relax with my baby girl today....get that room of hers gutted..but nooo- we had to stay piled in my room with 2 fans and a standing AC unit running all day (thanks to my lovely in-laws!). I have just been frustrated to say the least. I think I am ready for work tomorrow..lol! Ugh!

Marathon & Scrapping

Hope the weekend is starting off well for everyone! I was not sure what mine would be like at first, but I really wanted to make some time to create some pages. I have been cleaning up and going through toys for Aida's room makeover and that is just wearing me down. I still have a lot to do...but I guess I will stick with just doing a little bit at a time.

I started watching Drop Dead Diva on Netflix this week. Lovvinng the show. The concept was a little odd..or silly..at first, but I remember I did watch "Dead Like Me." The idea behind the two shows are not very different. Either way- I am really enjoying it so far; I can't stop watching it. So through my marathon of Drop Dead Diva, here are a few of the pages I have scrapped:

Independence Day

I was about to finish up a scrapbook layout when I realized I had sat here all evening playing the Sims 3 with my daughter and now I just want to see pretty photos. I should be asleep but that is just too easy. Here is a photo of my daughter and her cousin from the 4th of July:

---------

--------------

---------

--------------

Happy Tuesday!!

Looking for that one

Hey there! Ooohhh...what a Sunday it has been. I woke up out of a crazy dream. Last night I watched "An Officer and a Murderer" on Lifetime and I kept watching after the movie was over to see the true story. I kept telling myself I should not have watched any of it but I could not help myself. I ended up having a dream about those horrific home invasions and that I had to catch the guy. When I woke up, I was "almost" about to catch him...so my heart was racing and I was in a panic...until I realized I was dreaming. Lol!!! I have quite a few "save the world/people " kind of  dreams." No idea why! I have always wanted to work for the CIA...hmm...lol!

Pretty Late

I have had the pleasure to be off from work the last 5 days and I must say I feel like a new me. In 5 hours 45 minutes, I am sure to be back to the old me. Sleepy and dreading the drive to work....lol! Yes,  in that small amount of time my mood will change. I am not a morning person...ever!  I just wanted to share a few photos from our 4th of July celebration. There are a few more I plan to edit and make pages for, but these are the first I have touched. I know what photos I wanted to use with this gorgeous kit but I did not know the theme of my journaling - until I thought of a conversation that I was sitting in on today. It may seem strange to some - maybe - depending on how you see things. The main idea I wanted to covey to Aida in this page was - be you - be free and never be afraid to be who you want to be. I have always been the one to not follow the crowd and do my own thing - even if on my own. I would not expect any different of her. 

Have you seen....?!?!

The Lily Pad's July BYOC?!?!? If you have not, you NEED to! I cannot think of one item I don't love. It was so hard to choose where to start my page and then I thought, I'll just make two pages. I could not resist. Many items from my first page I used again on my second page. I am trying to make myself scrap vacation photos that I have not touched (from 2 years ago to the present). We go out of town for my daughter's birthday as a celebration/vacation. She had one birthday party and I knew, that was just not a good thing...for me...lol!!

Before I share the pages I made, I just have a quick share of  one of the photos I used. I posted this on my FB and I hate how it looks. I do not know what is their compression standards but they stink..lol! Anywayy...here's the photo and my layouts with the latest Lily Pad BYOC products to  follow after with all of the credits listed and linked.

digital supplies used:

July 2012 BYOC:
Bloomin' Baubles  and Watercolor Summer by Kim Jensen
Make it messier by Kaye Winiecki
Rocket Pops by Valorie Wibbens
Mixed Arrows by Designs by Lili
Sparkle gel alpha and recycled paper flowers no. 2 by Sahlin Studio
Maritime Papers by One Little Bird

digital supplies used:

*July 2012 BYOC*
Sparkle gel alpha and recycled paper flowers no. 2 by Sahlin Studio
Maritime Papers and Maritime Elements by One Little Bird

*other TLP products*
Template: Petunia by Sara Gleason

I am going to attempt to get some rest. Somehow I have a cold and a sore throat. I started feeling bad yesterday, but gee...I thought maybe it was just too cool in the room. Oh well! I will probably scrap most of the day and stay inside if I can. We have enough groceries...now I just need someone to cook them..lol! Ahh well...Happy Friday!!

Way too hot!

100 degree weather...in Alabama??!!? Ohhh this is not goooodd. During the summer, we always go to the store at night- after 7:00 pm but it will still be in the 90s around that time. All I can say is: "oh my electric bill!" That is where all of our extra money will be going just to keep cool...lol! I was supposed to run my errands early this morning but I just did not feel like it.  Pretty sure I will regret that now. Oohh welll!!