The Wonders of Photoshop: AKA Plastic Surgery for the Poor and Uninclined

Before
After


Ahhh Photoshop. How I love thee! What other wonder can magically make my love handles disappear and raise my bustline off of my knees with no need for anesthesia?

If you too have to make a family album and don't want your stomach rolls and old-lady boobs preserved for generations, the clone tool is your friend.

For the stomach rolls: select a lighter spot (preferably on the seemingly flatter part of the abdomen), alt-click and clone over the shadows of the love handles. Presto! A much flatter (albeit still slightly rotund) stomach.

For the 5-minute boob picker upper: use the selection tool (rectangular marquee works) to select those saggy, old lady mammaries. Copy and paste. Move copy of breasts to higher, perkier position. Using a spot on your new, flatter tummy, clone over the old boobs until they vanish into oblivion. Voila! No longer will your great, great grandchildren envision you as a female version of the Michelin Man! No longer is your poor bust support preserved for generations!

No need to thank me. Cash or check works just fine.

(I kid...I kid.)

THIS made me laugh.

Disclaimer: NO, this isn't my way of announcing anything. This baby factory is closed for the duration.

But I AM wondering what it says about my sense of humor that this had me rolling on the floor.

Some things I've learned...'bout scrappin.

So...I work part time at an LSS. LOVE IT. Love the paper. Love the ribbons. Love opening all the boxes and seeing what's new. Love my boss...nice lady who makes me feel needed.

Anyway...she got hired to do an entire scrapbook for a lady for Christmas who wants to give it as a gift to her son. I guess she did the same thing last year for a different son.

Lady doesn't want the album to be "pimped out." Just wants it simple and nice. (And, since it's for a 20 year old male, NOT froofy.)

Lady provides a STACK of 4x6 photos. Not even GOOD photos. Red eyes in a lot of them. Many out of focus. Some just random.

Anyway, boss asks me to help. (Our store does a HUGE amount of printing Christmas cards and wedding invites, so she was swamped.)

How hard can it be, right? Lady's not picky...not a scrapper. Should be able to just "slam" it out, right?

Oh. My. Heck.

Scrapping your average 4x6 photos is HARD.

Really, REALLY hard.

I am SO used to seeing (and using) nice, cropped photos that are sized for the layout design that I think I probably burned a few circuits trying to make my asthetics and the project parameters copacetic.

The number of photos per layout varied. Most groupings needed to be stretched out (or crammed into) a 2 page 12x12 spread. EVERY layout was a multiple photo layout. ALL the photos were 4x6. And there was NO journaling, NO outside information to work with. Occasionally I could use a title if one was included with the photo set.

The pages were plaaaaiiin. No flowers, very little ribbon and only a smattering of rubons. Most chipboard was used for titles...and hand die cut by little 'ol me...not premade.

The result was very "old-school."

Not that there's anything wrong with that....but I hadn't realized how spoiled I had become....with all my photo editing and cute trendy product. Without all that the result was....

Ugh.

Ugh for me, anyway. Not my style. Not fulfilling for me in a creative sense. And VERY restrictive.

But it is how the vast majority of people out there scrap.

4 x 6 photos. Lots per page. Grouped by events. Minimum embellishment.

And it. is. HARD.

Who'da thunk?

Some Thoughts on Service...

So...I do the Black Friday thing. It's like a tradition now. Even though I didn't go with a specific agenda this year, I still managed to spend waaaayyyy too much money.

Now, we all know that Black Friday is not for the weak of heart. Or of toes. (Mine were smooshed more often than I can count.) But STILL, it would be nice if the retailers on whom we drop all of our hard earned cash on would try to make the experience as pleasant as possible.

A girl can dream, right?

Let me tell ya a little story....

DH and I go to Circuit City and manage to find something on my daughter's list. We find what appears to be a short line...only to discover that it's short because it also happens to be the desk where they send everyone with a question. The poor, over-tired, over-worked cashiers are not only dealing with people grumpy because the 15 computers that they stocked for 299 were sold hours ago, they're also dealing with people grumpy because the register line is barely moving BECAUSE of all the grumpy people who thought they could score a screamin' deal without freezing their buns off.

Anyway, two people ahead of us is a man who appears to be either from India or Pakistan who speaks with an accent in a very soft voice. Apparently he has just purchased a computer. He gets ready to leave...and decides he wants a printer (one of the specials that day is that you can get a printer that is free (*after rebate) if you purchase a certain computer.)

Well, he proceeds to tell this to the cashier, who has already moved onto another customer. The cashier, obviously overtired and looking forward to working another 12 hours that day (true story!) seems to forget all manners and says "WHAT? WHAT?" to the overly quiet customer. (I commented on this to my DH...joking that maybe the cashier had been raised in a barn...only to discover a little later that we had personal knowledge that this was not the case.)

Anyway, the man finally communicates to the cashier that he wants the printer. The cashier grabs a Lexmark printer and rings it into the computer.

"No," says the customer, "I want the HP one."

Insert *heavy sigh* here.

Cashier grabs HP printer, rings it into the register, and tells customer that it is 89 dollars.

"Oh, no," says the customer, "give me the Lexmark printer."

Cashier trys, and fails, not to roll his eyes.

Cashier takes Lexmark printer, rings it in and tells customer that it is also 80-ish dollars.

"It is free after rebate?" asks customer.

"Yep." replies cashier.

"Is there a rebate with the HP printer?"

"I dunno," replies cashier. He turns to co-worker and asks about rebate. Co-worker says, "Not sure. Sometimes the HP ones have a $50 dollar rebate, but I don't know."

Cashier turns to customer and says, "Yeah, it has a 50 dollar rebate."

(I turn to look at DH, because that's not how I heard it from the co-worker.)

"Ok, give me the HP printer," says customer.

Cashier rings in printer, customer pays for the printer. Cashier stands, staring at the reciept printer for a minute and finally says...."It's not printing a rebate. I guess it doesn't have one."

"Well then," says customer, "I don't want this one. I want the Lexmark one."

"Sorry," says the cashier, "but we're not doing returns today. You'll have to come back tomorrow."

**************************************

Now if it had been ME, I would have pitched a fit to put Whitney Houston to shame. This customer, however, after a brief protest, left with his unwanted merchandise.

I noticed that the cashier failed to mention their 15% restocking fee.....

As we were paying for our merchandise, the cashier looked at my dh's ID and said, "I think I know you!" Turns out cashier is dh's cousin that grew up out of state.

In Washington, as it turns out, and not in a barn. ;)

Now, I KNOW that there are plenty of dishonest people out there, which is why it is harder and harder to return or exchange merchandise.

And I KNOW that it was very, very busy at Circuit City on Black Friday, which is probably why they didn't want cashiers tied up with returns.

But considering the circumstances, it seems an exception should have been made. It seems that not only is the customer no longer "right," but that they are an entity to be tolerated and whipped into submission to a plethora of rules and regulations.

Sorta takes the fun out of it all.

However, it would probably take a disaster of mythic proportions to stop me from shopping all together.

Speaking of drama....

Aforementioned teenage daughter is going to give me an ulcer.

Daughter is 14. Pretty. Attracts boys like bees to honey. (And, believe it or not, that's not even my main worry.)

Daughter is creative. Her English teachers rave about her writing ability. She was one of 2 students in her middle school last year to score full marks on a nationally graded essay. She's one of a handful of students in the entire high school (and the only freshman) to be ranked "fluent" in writing. Daugther also loves to draw and is especially good with manga. She is also the darling of her art class. The other kids call her Anime.

Daughter is SMART. Was in the gifted program. Scores in the top ten percent nationally on all standardized tests. (The complete battery. Not just one or two sections.)

Daughter just got a 2.7 on her first offical high school report card.

I do NOT know what to do with this child.

She is bright, caring, SO good with her younger siblings. She is sweet and stays out of trouble.

And she is the laziest little !@#$ when it comes to getting her homework done.

We had this problem in middle school, too. It seems that, no matter how much I try to impress upon her that it is HER future she's affecting, she doesn't seem to grasp the concept.

She wants to be a graphic designer when she grows up. And she could do it too.

But at the rate she's going, she'll also have to do it with thousands of dollars in student loans.

And that just sucks.

Drama Drama Drama

No, this thread isn't about my teenage daughter.

Though it could be.

She is quite dramatic.

No, THIS thread is all about the drama in the scrapbook "industry."

Typing the word "industry" makes me cringe a little. It makes Scrapbooking sound like Microsoft.

Or something.

Anyway...there has been MUCH drama abounding lately.

To sum up:

1) It is extremely stupid to hold a "contest" (and I'm using this word lightly) and not check your entries for compliance to your own contest rules. Creating Keepsakes, (if you're listening, which I doubt, because I have a very firm mental picture of y'all with your fingers in your ears and your eyes squinshed shut chanting "I can't heeeeaaarrr you!"), you can't post contest rules, clearly DETAIL those rules in a public forum, and then chose to ignore them when it suits your purpose. Much drama will ensue. (See? Drama. The running theme here.)

2) It is impossible to take a picture of yourself on a river run from the shore while being buffetted down rapids going at a hearty clip. Especially if both hands are on your oar. Especially if it's in the exact same spot that the professional hired photographer takes her pictures. Especially if the mad photoshop skills it would take to blend a series of blurry, imperfect photographs aren't sufficient to erase a few pounds and clone out a moustache. Positing such an implausible scenario will cause much detective work and endless drama. And if the drama gets to be too much, don't storm out in a blaze of glory claiming that you were misconstrued. It won't work. It will just cause MORE drama.

3) It is a bad idea to manage a message board and violate your own rules. Especially if your board has a "glitch" that allows people to see your potty mouth. Especially if it also allows people to read you possibly handing out personal member information. There will be ...you guessed it...drama. People will dramatically email your boss. Your boss will have to post on your board trying to appease the dramatic and angered masses. And I'm guessing he'll be none to pleased about it.

This is the scrapbooking "industry." It is NOT "scrapbooking." When did scrapbooking start becoming "These are the Days of our Acid-Free Lives?"

Sigh. I remember when we cut out photo mats with fancy sissors, sneezed some stickers around them and called it a day. HOF was the shirtless dude on Baywatch and smack was something you did with your lips after you ate something tasty.

Those were the days.

Confessions of a Reformed Scrap Snob.

A few weeks ago, there was a Scrap Expo in town. Anyone who knows me KNOWS that I'll be there unless prevented from going by a major natural disaster. And we never have hurricanes in Utah....

Well, most people who know me know I also hate going places alone. It's mostly because I hate driving, period. I always try to get someone to go with me so I don't have to drive.

Well, on this particular occasion I invited my sister. Now my sister has scrapbooked on occasion, but has never developed my enthusiasm (read "obssession") for the hobby and usually declines to scrap with me.

Recently said sister went on a cruise. And has lots of cool, cruise photos. And has decided she would like them scrapbooked. So she agreed to go (and drive) on the condition I would work on her album with her.

So we go to the expo. I bring my travel stash but don't have anything that I think would go with her photos. So we start wandering the booths looking for things we could use. Right away she finds some fish stickers and thinks they would work on one of the ocean pages.

"Uh," I say, "I don't really use stickers. Like that. With animals. Maybe letter stickers. But not really fish ones."

"Oh!" says sister. "Stickers aren't cool anymore?"

"Ummm....not really. Well, I mean, I don't use them, but if you want to, you can. I mean, it is your album."

"Noooo," says sister. "I want it to be cute."

So we look around some more and score some awesome Scenic Route chipboard letters for 2 dollars each. While I'm standing in line to buy more MME buttons than one person could ever use, sister goes and looks at the next booth.

And comes back with a laser-cut Cancun title with a silver dolphin on it.

"Look!" she says. "I thought this would be good for the Cancun page."

"Uh, OK." I say. "I don't really use stuff like that, but we could make it work."

"Oh," says sister. "Well, maybe I'll give it to Stephanie. She can use it on her album."

Finally we get settled and sister watches while I do this semi-artsy page for her trip to Hell. (It's a place. Really. Some guy was exploring it and said Oh HELL! and the name stuck.) Sister seems to like that page ok. Then I start working on her Margaritaville photos and pull out my sacred stash of Foofala tropical colored paper and my Queen and Co felt trim. I add some of my newly acquired buttons for good measure and am really liking the way it's turning out.

Sister seems underwhelmed. She's not happy about a"hole" in my design. And about the fact that by this point we've spent about $130 and have only 2 layouts to show for it.

Fast forward two weeks later. Sister tells me she's going to Roberts to get some more paper for her album for an upcoming crop. "Maybe I can find some life-preserver paper and we can put Stephanie's and my photos in the holes. I'm going to look for some beach paper and some other stuff I can use too." Sister seems excited to get her album going.

And all I'm thinking is..."Life preserver paper???? How am I going to make THAT cute?"

And it hits me. I am a scrapbook snob. And I don't think I like it.

Who am I to look down my nose at the things my sister wants to include in her album? Why does it matter to ME what things she wants to put on HER page?

When did it become SO important that the pages I create are "trendy" and use the latest product? Why do I worry if my layouts are "magazine worthy?" I don't even submit! Why does the thought of having to use themed paper send cold shivers down my spine?

Now, I'm not going to change the way I scrap, because I have my own style and I enjoy my pages. But I AM going to be more aware of how my attitudes might affect others with different likes and dislikes than mine. I AM going to leave MY own preferences at the door and help my sister create an album that SHE enjoys. And I AM going to appreciate other people's creations for what they are: an expression of themselves.

I WILL scrap with the life-preserver paper. And I'm gonna LIKE it! :D

Kids.

Ok...I'd like to share with you some little tidbits of wisdom I have gleaned from my children and from the children I teach. Pay close attention....there will be a test.

My dd while watching a nursing mother: "My mom has some of those, but she doesn't use them any more!"

A preschooler watching me do jumping jacks: "My mom says that I won't get big boobs until I'm OLDER!"

A preschooler after being told about the nativity: "I already know that! We have the movie."

A little guy digging in the sand near me today: "I can't tell you what I'm doing...it's a LOOONG story. *pause* I'm making nothing."

A little guy after I had eaten some onions: "Miss Meridith, WHAT did you HAVE for LUNCH?"

My dd after I slipped on the stairs and told her I lost my balance: "That's ok, mommy, I'll help you find it."

Me at the doctor's office yesterday with my sons: "K, guys, they're going to check your peepers." DS (looking horrified) "MOM! Don't say that." Me (confused) *pause* *think* "Your EYES, Isaac, your EYES."

Kids crack me up. I never know what's going to come out of their mouths.

Maybe I identify with them. :D

I am a consumer...hear me roar!

I've been thinking about marketing.

Specifically, marketing to the scrapbooking consumer.

More specifically, the role of the scrapbook celebrity in marketing to the scrapbooking consumer.

The "scrap celeb" is a bizarre phenomenom to the world of scrapbooking. When I tole painted, I wasn't innundated with "tole celebs..." (well, there IS Donna Dewberry, but never once did I see her at a craft store signing her books while a gaggle of frantic women jocky for best photo position.) And to be honest, Donna probably wouldn't have made a good scrap celeb, anyway. First of all, she's not "hip." She doesn't use words like "uber" or "rawks." She doesn't call tole painting "life art" and she doesn't pretend that tole painting is going to revolutionize your life.

Second, she's, well, not 20. She doesn't have a short, spiky hairstyle or a nose ring. She may not even know how to clone out a blemish in Photoshop to save her life.

Scrapbooking, as a industry, is just...well, wierd. All of a sudden, it should matter WHO does a company's layout just as much as how well it is done. Design teams are filled with "names" (aka people who have won a major contest at some point...or who are very good at calling attention to themselves)..or at the very least, good looking people who at least LOOK good on your message board.

Now I, personally, have never bought a product because Lisa Bearnson used it...or Heidi Swapp made it, or Ali Edwards blogged about it. I HAVE bought products I've heard about online...but only because I thought they'd be something I could use.

I imagine MOST scrappers are the same way. We buy what we like. It doesn't matter if the layout in the ad was created by Debbie Designer or Quasimodo...as long as it's a good layout. My decision to buy the product is more influenced by seeing designs that inspire me to try the product than by who created the designs.

Something happened recently that made me think that the industry, at least, thinks that we DO care if the design teams are populated with young, attractive people who give good face. And it broke my heart...because a few people that I really like were caught in the crossfire.

If this trend continues...if companies start to market people more than their products, well, I'm not interested. I'm not scrapping pictures of your design team, I'm scrapping pictures of my family. I don't CARE who designs your products or your samples, as long as they are GOOD products or samples.

I don't want to feel manipulated, condescended to or marketed to. I want to feel respected. I want companies to realize that my money (and that of others like me) is what keeps them afloat. I want them to treat me as a capable, thinking adult who doesn't need to be sold friends. I'm perfectly capable of deciding whether or not I like a product or service without some perky, preppy little person pimping it out in their blogs or posts.

There's been speculation that a well known scrapbooker who has disappeared from the industry may have not continued to get work because she didn't fit that perky, young, skinny, hip mold.

If that's indeed true, I'm having none of it. I'm a one-woman boycott of companies that decide your worth as a professional scrapbooker is based more on your marketability than your ability. It's stupid and it makes no sense. When did scrapbooking become SO much about someone else's story? I *thought* it was about my story and the stories of those I choose to scrap about...not about the person who designed my product or who gave me an idea how to use it.

Probably a lot of this rant makes no sense without its proper context, which, unfortunately, I'm not at liberty to share. Just know that decisions are being made on criteria that have nothing to do with talent, dedication, or loyalty.

With that, I'm off to bed. Whether or not it makes sense to you, I, at least, feel a little better.

It's just like a trainwreck...

You know you shouldn't watch, but you just can't help yourself.

I watched Brittney Spears' VMA performance.

From the first stumble before the music started to the half executed dance moves and the aimless wandering around the stage, you just knew that not only was Brittney NOT back to form, she was also NOT better.

Which got my thinking about young Hollywood. The younger eschelon of stars seem to be one hapless trainwreck after another. All these famous teens and twenty-somethings popping pills faster than they can pop out of rehab.

Where are the parents?

These parents who probably watched with glee and a billion dollar sparkle in their eyes are now wringing their hands and wondering how their golden gooses turned out to be jail birds. Where was Dina Lohan when a 17 year old Lindsay was repeatedly photographed partying in bars? Where was Brittney's mom when Britt decided to marry a back-up dancer who left his pregnant girlfriend in the lurch? And why can't Hayden Panetierre's (sp) mother strap a leash on her born to be wild daughter before the same disasters happen to her?

I think we need a celebrity edition of Super Nanny. I can imagine Nanny Jo telling Dina: "Now Mum, you've got to be firm with Lindsay. Take away the Jack Daniels. If she tries to take it again, put her in the naughty corner and make her STAY there!"

I'd love to be there when Nanny Jo takes Lindsay's asbsentee, ex-con father and makes him cry on television because she made him feel like a bad parent.

In the meantime...well, we'll all continue to watch in fascination...wondering how those children born with such talent and good fortune can self-destruct on a world-wide stage.

And we'll pray to God we're smart enough not to let our own children do the same thing.

Moooooore Layouts! :D

Lots 'O Layouts

Some stuff I've done lately. :D

*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