*read* all about it

I'm a bad blogger. But since no one is hanging on my every word, I have to pressure to perform.

Saw this on 2peas today...thought I'd use it:

1. The Book That Changed My Life - The first book I ever read that made me realize I was part of something bigger than myself was "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. K- it's not original or anything, but it was kind of an eye opener for a kid who had up until then read mostly Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden. I have a special place in my heart for that book.

2. A Book I've Read More Than Once-I laughed at this one, just because I ALMOST ALWAYS read books more than once, due to the fact that the first time through I sort of rush it so I can find out what happens. Then, I have to go back again and take my time. Also, I'm terrible about returning books to the library, so I usually buy the books I read instead....and since I can't ALWAYS be buying books, but ALWAYS have to be reading something, I re-read the books I have.

3. A Book I'd Want With Me on a Desert Island-Good question. UMMM...ok, I'd want my bible and bom with me. BUT, if I could take something frivolous too...Treason by Orson Scott Card. Just because I like it and it's interesting to me.

4. A Book That Made Me Laugh-Big Trouble by Dave Barry. It made me laugh out loud! I tried to read it out loud to dh...and then realized how much profanity it had. I guess it's one of those things that's funnier in my head. :D

5. A Book That Made Me Cry-Don't laugh...but I cried when Dumbledore died. Yup. I'm a baby like that.

6. A Book I Wish Had Been Written-Have I ever said that in some alternate universe I am a writer? I had some success with it in high school and college, but no drive to pursue it. So, the book I wish had been written is the one I know is somewhere in my head.

7. A Book I Wish Had Never Been Written-Mein Kampf by Adolph Hitler. Vicious racist propoganda that showed how truly sick and twisted he was.

8. A Book I Am Currently Reading-I just finished Leven Thumps and the Gateway to Foo. It was ok (borrowed it from my son cause I was bored.) Before that I read Magic Street by Orson Scott Card....LOVED IT!

9. A Book I Am Meaning To Read-I have this list of 1001 books I should read before I die. I'm going to have to go pay off my library fines and try it.

10. My favorite book of all time-OH wow. I just love books. I love just about everything OSC has written, and I'm also a huge fan of the Dark Tower series by Stephen King. I just can't narrow it down.

Well, my reading habits aren't all that intellectual or politically interesting, but it is what it is. TTFN

I said GIMME YOUR STUFF!

I've always wanted to travel. I've always been intrigued by exotic places and different enviroments.

Instead, I live 20 from where I grew up.

So, I want to live vicariously through you. ;)

I'm up for trading for stuff from places I may never get to visit.

What I have:

Scrapbook stuff. Utah is the scrapbook capital of the world. (IMO) I've got albums, paper, embellishments, stickers, rubons, you name it. If there's something specific you'd like, I can probably find it. Scrap Mags too.

Utah stuff. We're a pretty quirky place. I have limited access to 2002 olympic things, or I can send you salt water taffy from the Great Salt Lake. If you have a specific request, let me know and I'll see if I can pull it off. We've got some beautiful National Parks here, and I can get books or postcards from those. (Zion's, Arches, Bryce, etc.)

Mormon stuff. (otherwise known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.) SLC is the headquarters of the Mormon church. I can't send you extra wives or stuff like that (I KNOW that's what some of you are thinkin...) but if you have a respectful request I'll try to honor it. Temple Square postcards, Mormon Tabernacle choir stuff, Books of Mormon, etc. No flames, please.

Also, I DO have a Wild Oats handy, for those of you who are interested. :)

I want:

Stuff that's unique to your locale. Probably not interested in postcards, etc., but would LOVE crafty things, books, food, clothes--basically things I can't get by stopping by an import store here. While I would love stuff from anywhere, I have a daughter that is fascinated by all things Japanese, so I have a particular interest in that.

Thanks for stopping by...looking forward to hearing from you! :D

Rooty TOOTY Fresh and Fruity

Toot Toot! These two layouts are made with paper (although these are digital mockups) that my good friend Sherry and I designed....

and it is coming out at CHA summer for SONBURN!

I'm totally excited and can't believe it's actually happening. It's all so last minute, it's being printed THIS WEEK...so here's crossing my fingers that nothing goes wrong.

The line includes 3 pps and 2 double sided cardstocks (one printed, one solid) and an alphabet rub on and a doodle rub on.

I'm so nervous about how it will be recieved--I've never done anything like this before!

Congrats to Sherry Laffoon for her darling doodles and the inspiration to create this line. It's really her brain child, I'm just the techno geek that put it all together.

Everyone knows I'm in over my head...

Ever feel that way? I do.

So...what's new on the homefront?

My mom has published a book! It's called "Almost Sisters" and it's published by Deseret Book. It's a collaboration between her, her sister Carroll, and her friend Lael. It's intended to be the first book of a trilogy...and my mom et al. are madly working on the second installment.

It's a great book...can't wait to see what happens in book 2. I made postcards for a book signing they are holding in my mom's backyard this week. Hope there is a great turnout!

Gearing up for another CHA...Sonburn is coming out with some Christmas stuff...can't wait to see it. I'll be sad if this is my last trade show (most probably will be) but it's in Chicago and I'm really excited about it.

Things I must DO:

Mail the @#%^$#@% circle journals again. I mailed them (months late) only to have the silly things come BACK because I screwed up the address somehow. And here they are, waiting for a new box to get sent back out. I need to put them somewhere in my line of sight so they don't get put out of my mind! I am NEVER again doing one if these, I am just not anal enough.

Do some LO's for a manufacturer I heard may have some openings. They aren't cutting edge style wise, but--neither am I so I might as well try, right?

Clean my @#$@#$ house. It is SO hard to keep a 3 bedroom house tidy when six people are living in it. Not to mention the 15 year accumulation of crap to go with it. Just thinking about it puts me in a foul mood.

Finish getting things organized down in Primary. I'm making some changes that I hope will make things run more smoothly. Still looking for a chorister and a scout leader...and I really want my secretary to work out but so far she hasn't made it to one meeting. It's all still new so I'm going to try to see if it will be ok...but I really need someone there I can depend on. I'm a weird type of person...inside I really want to be organized and I'm kind of anal about it, but I have a hard time actually doing things...so I delegate!!! And I need dependable people to delegate to.

OK....I really really will try to keep up on this better...if for no other reason than to do some journaling for myself.

Everyone knows I'm in over my head....

*Sigh* KIDS!

Well...I really want to know. WHY do kids decide they absolutely need your attention at the most inconvenient times?

Today after work I decided to take a shower (having my annual girly doctor appt today and really needing to shave my legs :D ). Well, at our house unless you turn the water on for a while first, you will end up with lukewarm water. I totally lost time while surfing and decided that I'd better jump in the shower without the prerequisite warm up period.

K-ya have to understand, I have not shaved these legs in TWO WEEKS. (It's winter and I'm married. Totally didn't feel the need.)

So, needless to say, it was an involved process. :D :D

Now here, where I live, it SNOWED 2 days ago. We keep our house at a nice and chilly 65 degrees during the day so that we can afford to eat.

I get in the shower...lukewarm water...and am trying to de-fuzz myself as quickly as I can before I get goosebumps and totally cut my legs up...

AND MY KIDS KEEP YELLING AT ME through the bathroom door.

"Moooooom, Josh keeps hitting me over the head with a PILLOW!"

Me: "ANNNDDDDD?"

"THIS pillow! He keeps hitting me and he won't stop!"

Me: "Well, he's obviously stopped NOW because YOU are holding the PILLOW."

"But MOOOOMmmmmmm"

This whole conversation is carried out with the bathroom door open and the cold air coming in to add to my luke warm shower.

Two minutes later:

"Moommmmm. Isaac won't let Sadie use the playstation!!!"

Me: Did you hit your brother over the head with a pillow?

*Silence*

"Well, he was really BUGGING me and I told him to stop and he WOULDN'T"

I am REALLY COLD. Get OUT of the bathroom and CLOSE the DOOR!

30 seconds later: MOMMMMMMMMM....

At that point I yelled (yes, yelled) at my kids to shut the bathroom door and to let me take my shower without freezing to death.

When I got out of the shower, Sadie says, "Mommy, you mean."

*SIGH*

One of these days I am going to take a picture of these boys fighting with eachother and scrap it.

Because, someday, they will be on the phone or in the shower and hear, "Daaaaddddddd...."

And I want them to know that they started it.

My broken blog got fixed :D

Huge hugs and thanks to Dawn from 2peas for helping me put my blog back together! She spent her valuable time helping a total stranger (I emailed her because of her "queen of blogger html" pea title.) Just goes to show that there still are really nice people in the world (something I tend to forget when I am driving.)

I am so BUMMED! My 2nd fave kit club (the first being Paper Made Memories, of course!) had a dt contest and I didn't know about it. I order stuff from them all the time and am very blue that I missed this. It looks like they may do it again in October...I must keep my eyes peeled!

To enter or not....I fell in love with 3 Bugs in a Rug paper, and actually got 2 kit clubs to order from them (and may have indirectly influenced a third.) I want to be on that DT sooooo badly, BUT, so does every-stinkin-body else. Maybe I have what they want? Still, I don't really LOVE rejection that much. LOL! And really, they can have a totally top notch, famous, all HOF team if they so choose. So....I'm still thinking about it.

Sonburn is going to have new stuff for summer cha, so I hear! Whoopee! I am excited to get to play with some new stuff. Sounds like DH and I will get to go to Chicago...a first for both of us! Crossing my fingers...

Home, Home on the rangeeeeee

Back from a BUSY week at CHA! Our booth had lots of people doing our make and takes, and I hope that eventually translates into orders! Reed and I had a blast spending so much time together and working side by side without the kiddos, though I missed them terribly.

Our booth was kiddie-corner from Gin X, so I loved seeing my good buddy Sherry, and getting to spend a little time with some others from her booth. Ginger is great, and Barb and Sam had me laughing. And that new gal...totally just spaced on her name, but she was awesome too.

Got to finally meet Scrappy Carol in person, she is just as nice irl as she is online. Also got to see Teri again...she is da bomb! Wish I knew her better, I get the feeling that we would get along well. Met Alissa and Cari with PBP, and of course Kristy was awesome as ever. Also briefly met Michelle who is on the dt with me at paper made memories...she's a doll! She posted a cute pic of the two of us over there...must get a copy!

Designer Dinner was fun but CRAZY! So many people in such a small space! There were people I wanted to meet but weaving my way through the crowd was near impossible. It was very well organized: props to the gals who took all the time to put it together!

Reed and I ate at Nobu in the Hard Rock Hotel one night. If you like sushi and have cash to burn (muy expensive!) I recommend it! The food was FABULOUS and the service was AMAZING! I'll save up next time I'm going to Vegas, must go there again.

I didn't get to look at product much at CHA which was disappointing....but fortunately there are lots of pics online now with the new and exciting stuff. I LOVE 3 bugs in a rug...and so does everyone else. So much for my DT aspirations... ;)

I have to say: I visited one booth from a company I know of online (I lurk in their forums on occasion) and the gal there (pretty well known in the sb world) was just short of rude to me. It caught me off guard because she seems nice online. I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt (it was the last day and I'm sure she was tired, ) but still, it's important to be nice to the little people. I actually had thought about ordering from her, but I've reconsidered. Lesson for today...

Anyway, I'm home, I'm tired and a good time was had by all. TTFN

Woulda Shoulda Coulda...

I'm trying to decide which is worse...not getting something because I wasn't good enough, or not getting something because I didnt' try.

After looking at the new SBA DT, I am pretty mad at myself for not trying. NOT that I think I'm "better" than the girls that got it, but because the girls that got it for the most part weren't *huge* names, so it seems like that's what SBA was going for...hence, more of a shot than say, if they wanted all HOF'ers. The girls that got it are all amazing, and I'm still intimidated, but I'm THRILLED to see some lesser known scrappers hit the big time. Good for them! :D (shoulda at least tried..grumble grumble...)

There's a Manufacturer dt call coming up that I want SOOOO badly! (Me and everyone else...LOL) I'm not gonna psyche myself out of trying though. Here's hoping...

Laters.... :D

Back in the saddle again....

After 4 days of staring at a monitor that had gone all *wonky*, I'm relieved to say that I can actually see again. Old monitor finally gave up the ghost...and retired kicking and screaming while flashing screens of neon blue. Dear dh was able to bring one home from work that is working nicely. Now I can surf without a headache...

My baby is sick again...feverish, occasional vomiting, and boogers of bright yellow. It doesn't keep her down though! As long as the fever is medicated, she's her usual bouncy self...if much more squawky and onery than usual. Can't keep a good kid down.

Some of my digital papers are going to be in the free ScrapStreet Digi kit for February. I really like them! I also was so proud of myself...I made a "metal" hinge from scratch. I'd really LOVE to do more designing...but I keep hearing I *need* adobe illustrator and a WACOM. So...I'll just tinker for now.

CHA is rapidly coming up...and I'm still waiting for paper to distribute to my designers. It should be here any day now...can't wait to play! I'm super excited for CHA too, but am having a HARD time fighting this feeling of inadequacy I have. Why can't I just relax and have fun?

Thursday night, I submitted about 4 LO's to ST...that I REALLY liked. I felt I had a decent chance of having at least ONE picked up. (They all have recieved really positive response when I have posted them.) The deadline wasn't until the 16, but I saw toots for it FRIDAY on the veggie board. So...probably too little too late again. It's frustrating though, submitting with *theoretically* 3 days until the deadline...and finding out they'd already decided and probably didn't even LOOK at my submissions. Am I ever gonna catch a break?

Interesting discussion on Pink Martini Designs...about manufacturer DT's and layout styles. Do manufacturers want the latest style (currently art journal---which I LOVE, but does not reflect the majority of scrappers OR focus on showcasing product, imo) or do they want solid, good looking lo's with lots of product that the average scrapper feels they could duplicate (if not come up with on their own.) I hope somebody reads this, cause I'd really like to know what you think.

Bad, BAD blogger....

Yep, here I am back again. Sorry for the extended lag...I been in a funk. :D

Popped in today to find 3 very nice comments on my last entry...thank you so much gals...you made my DAY!

Congrats to the AWESOME Shanna for her QK DT gig. That gal is GOING PLACES, I just know it! :D

You know that show, "My Name is Earl (ed, whatever)"? About how he figures the bad stuff in life is happening to him because he's put too much bad karma out into the universe, so to get good things to happen to him he has to put good karma out? Well, I guess I better start being a better person, because the crap has hit the fan, ladies and gents. BOTH our cars broke down over the holidays, resulting in a grand total of 3200 in repairs. Guess what? I never have that kind of money just hanging out, let alone around Christmas. Had to take out a loan against my tax return. AND, we couldn't go anywhere as a family over the break because...no car. My in-laws, (who are really the sweetest in the world) have let us use one of their cars, even though they really use both. Only problem is, it only fits 5. We are six. Karma again...

I'm starting to feel like my blog is becoming a whine fest. Sorry!

On a positive note....

Ummm....

I'll have to get back to you on that one. :D