Happy Birthday Bro - One Page Layout

 I thought I'd take a quick break from posting my Grand Tetons layouts. Here's one from several years back that I've never postged. Note: My youngest has since cut his hair and beard...lol...way better now! 

We met the boys for a quick birthday lunch at Taco Bell!!!! Too funny, but we knew we could all step away from our work day long enough to be together on their birthday! We celebrated it again on another day so the spouses and grandkids could join.

Yes, they are birthday brothers! Two years apart, but both share the same date of birth. I'd like to take the credit for that, because I think it is so fun that they share their special days. But you know, they decide when they'll make their entrance in the world, with absolutely nothing Mom can do about it. 

I used several different scraps on the page and layered them up as a backdrop to the picture. I took my cue from the wall mural in the photo and used those colors. I added three different types of washi (love the mustaches!) and a vintage looking happy birthday image from Design Space, along with strip journaling. The white Jelly Roll pen is a great way to add quick faux stitching. I used baker's twine for the bow in the upper right corner and my old revolving date stamp on a ticket to mark the year.

Here's a closeup so you can more easily see most of the details.

Thanks for stopping by!! Enjoy your week and be crafty!

Published Layout - Spring 2024 Creative Scrapbooker Magazine

 

Hello friends! I'm super excited to share this bit of news with you. My layout "Happy Place" was selected to be published in the Spring 2024 issue of Creative Scrapbooker magazine!!! This issue is stunning and full of all kinds of inspiration. You can check me out on page 116!

This layout features photos of me in my scrapbook/office space! We built and moved into our home at the end of 2017 and was blessed with my very own dedicated crafting space for the first time in my life! It truly is my "happy place". I still work a full time job, but love the moments I can get in there and play around with all my crafty stuff. The layout also reminds me to practice self love. These photos of me turned out okay, but who knew they'd show up on a published layout. Yikes! 

If you've never checked out one of their magazines, you definitely are missing out! You can view a super quick online preview here and scroll down to the short video. Every page of this issue is full of colorful inspiration and will feed your longing for sunshine and all the Springy things.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today. Have a blessed and crafty week!

Meow - One Page Scrapbook Layout

 I typically scarp two page layouts, but sometimes there just aren't enough pictures to warrant a two page spread. 

We were taking care of our youngest son and DIL's kitties while they were out of town. The grands got a kick out of playing with the kitties. 

This is a super simple layout using WeRMemory Keepers "Just Chillin" and Premier "The Optimist", along with some miscellaneous card stock and StampinUp's photo corner punch to add a little additional blue to the layout. That's it!

Thanks for checking out my layout.

New Glasses - One Page Scrapbook Layout

Do you ever scrapbook your selfies? When I take a pic that I actually like, sometimes I scrap it. Why not? It gives me an excuse to pull out some pretty paper scraps and get creative.

 I had fun making flowers with my Cricut to match those on the banner across the middle of the page.

The paper is KaiserCraft's "Paisley" and WeRMemory Keepers, along with other scraps, some miscellaneous brads, and SU markers. I experimented with a filter on one of the pics just for fun. I like how all of the colors work together and pop off the page.

Hope this inspires you to scrap yourself once in awhile. You have a story to tell, even if it's just about getting new glasses!

Angry Pepper - One Page Layout

 We ate at the Angry Pepper while we were in Florida. What a fun place! We really enjoyed the food and the nostalgic decor.

This is my wonderful husband, enjoying his food. He's the best!! Always up for an adventure with me. 

The paper is again part from a vintage stack from Crate Paper "the Pier". The banner at the top uses tags and tickets from Recollections and the red button from Jillibean. I tied a little red, white, and blue baker's twine in one of the Kraft tags where I journaled.

Just a simple layout, featuring some great memories with my husband while we were off on our Florida adventure. Thanks for stopping by. One more Florida beach layout to come!

Let the Sun Shine - One Page Florida Scrapbook Layout

 One page layouts are unusual for me, but I did several from our short time in Florida for a Memorial Service for my Aunt and Uncle in 2021. These photos highlight our view and hotel surroundings.

It's a great hotel, and I hope we will go back again some day. Maybe we'll actually be able to enjoy the pool. It was a little brisk for that this time around. So beautiful to look at, though. We enjoyed watching the pelicans and the ducks hanging out around the little marina. 

The paper is from an older stack by Crate Paper called "the Pier". It has a bit of a distressed, vintage vibe along with Echo Park's "Good Day" yellow polka dot. The green chevron washi from Queen & Co made a nice border, slightly overlapping the photos. I cut a few hearts with my Cricut and folded them in half for a little more texture and definition, and tucked the journaling card at an angle under one of the photos.

Thanks for stopping by! I think I have two more one pagers to share with you soon from our whirlwind trip to Florida.

Big News - One Page Newspaper Clipping Layout

 Does anybody still get the newspaper? Probably not many get it every day, if at all, anymore. I know we don't. It was a hard sell to my husband to cancel the subscription, but he finally realized he didn't really have the time to read it. 

Back in 2017, our then 4 year old granddaughter made the newspaper!!! It was pretty exciting, of course! This was actually the second time she made the newspaper. She's that awesome!

I wanted to preserve the article for future generations to see, but it was hard to come up with an idea of how to best use it in a my scrapbook album, but I thought this turned out cute. Maybe this will give you an idea, just in case you still have any old newspaper articles waiting to be scrapped. 

This layout was created quite awhile ago. My creative skills have improved since then, but bare with me as I post an oldy but a goody!

Isn't she just adorable?!? The joy on her face makes me smile. And...who wouldn't love to have some of this 76 degree weather right now??

The heart patterned paper made a good backdrop for the article. I matted the article twice, and lined it up with some striped ribbon, and a strip of washi tape below. The puffy clouds were inked around the edges and added above, because that's where clouds belong. 😂 The ribbon flower was purchased by the yard and cut apart for a birthday banner that I made for the same sweet baby girl. I added a few quote strips, pennants, and strips of paper, and boom...this BIG news article was preserved for future generations.

Hope this inspires you to do something crafty with your old news clippings! Good luck!

Richard Marx - One Page Scrapbook Layout

 We don't normally do much for Valentine's Day. Guess we just prefer to stay in, especially when it's chilly outside. But a few years back, my sweet Hubby treated me to a Richard Marx contest right here in town. It was so much fun!! He puts on a great show and, of course, I LOVE his music. It was a great evening together. 

This beautiful paper is so pretty!! Full of pink, red, lacey doilies and all things L.O.V.E. I didn't need to add very much, except my pictures and some journaling. I matted the photos in gray, and double matted the photo of me and my Hubs. I wish I would have used my Cricut to journal, but it's at least legible! Why didn't I wear red or pink? 💕

Hope you enjoy your Valentine's Day with those you love! Have a great week!

Guacamole with PaPa - One Page Scrapbook Layout

 It has been so long! Time has been getting away from me lately. Way past time for another post. 

Here is a cute little one pager of my sweet Granddaughter and my Hubby making Guacamole together a few years ago. She loves avocadoes. She even asked to help him make it last month when we had family over.  I love the two of them making it together, more than I love Guacamole, actually. 😏😜

I used a pretty floral for the background and a smaller square of green scrap behind the photos and the title. The tags were in the same pack as the floral paper. Not much more to add, except the date and some white twine. 

Enjoy your week!

Mom's Apple Crisp - One Page Scrapbook Layout

Everything about this layout makes me hungry. My Mom was the best cook I've ever known. I miss talking to her about recipes and getting her advice on everything from food to relationships...and everything in between. She was a great listener and stayed calm, and gave advice when I asked for it. I'm still learning from her, even though she's been gone for five years. I miss her so much. Pulling out her recipes brings her memories closer. 

I try not to make much dessert because I end up eating it. I still probably eat more of it than I should. This apple crisp hits the spot on a cool day once apples are in season. Yum!

This one page layout was inspired by my Mom's recipe in the picture. I would have loved her company while I peeled, cored, and sliced all the apples by hand. Even though she wasn't here with me, so many of her memories came flooding in.

Before I start sobbing...how about this layout? I created a down-home, country look with the red bandana patterned paper, the simple black and white checkerboard and the scrap of paper that looks like a handwritten letter. Lots of layers, and even some patriotic paper. The apple is a Design Space Image as well as the title. I like to scooch the letters together and weld them as much as possible. It just looks more designed to me than separate letters on the page. Plus, they're all lined up properly.

 Hope you enjoy the layout, and the recipe if you choose to try it out. She won blue ribbons for her cherry pie. Maybe I will have to make that some time, and take some pics for a future layout. My husband would love that. 😉

Comfort Food - One Page Layout

 Oh boy...there goes Fall! Temps have dipped down more than 30 degrees from last week to this week. We even had snow over the weekend. Wow...I'm just not ready for the "W" season yet.

Time to post some yummy, warm pics of comfort food. This warms me up on the inside...just looking at the pictures. Yes, we are already breaking out the soup pot. Tonight is leftover chilli.

I love my red cast iron soup pot. This is actually my second one. I wore out the first one. My husband looks forward to seeing the red pot on the stove. It signifies something good is about to happen!! He is so easy to please with food. I haven't made very many meals that he didn't like. Soup is one of his faves through the cold months!! It also means, leftovers the next day! WooHoo!

Tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Fattening? Yes! I try to eat low carb, though, and this fits in pretty well if I use Keto bread. Anyway...I love the mix of patterned paper that makes my soup pot pop off the page. The eat sign is from Design Sapce, wrapped with black and white baker's twine. 

Thanks for stopping by. This post has primed my tummy for Chilli! Bye!

Happy Birthday - One Page Scrapbook Layout

This is our beautiful daughter-in-love on her birthday last year. We are so very happy to have her as part of our family. Our sons have both done well choosing their forever love.

She is such a great wife to my son, Momma to our grandkids, daughter, daughter-in-love,  friend and many other roles that she wears so well. She is much stronger than she thinks she is and takes each new day in stride! She is primarily a Stay At Home Mom and I have so much respect for that role. She is adored by her family...and all of us!

Today is her special day and I hope it is the BEST year yet for her!!

Craft - One Page Scrapbook Layout

This little granddaughter of mine is something special!! She will be eight years old next month! Not sure how that happened so fast! She's very excited to spend time with me in my craft room. She's learning to use my Cricut and my iPad to find the images she is interested in. I love spending time with her, especially one on one!!

I don't love this picture of myself, but I LOVE that my hubby captured us crafting together and making memories. I hope she will always love to craft with me and spend time with her Grandma. 😍 She and her brother bring such joy, fun, and sometimes a little chaos to our little family! Being a Grandma is the best!!

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!! Stay crafty and healthy!

P.S. I haven't forgotten about the last few layouts form my son's wedding. They're coming soon.

One Page Layout - "New Family Tradition"

I have just one sibling..an older brother. He lives about 3 hours away in Michigan. Our parents are both gone now, so we only have each other as far as our core immediate family. Last year, my brother and sister-in-law joined us for dinner on Christmas day. We had already celebrated with my kids and their families. We had a great time. They just came for the day, but it was nice to have a quiet day catching up with them.

We were in the process of moving the week after Christmas, so this is one of the last formal photos inside our old dining room. The tree on our table was the only tree we had because it just didn't make sense to put one up as we were in the process of packing. It was a crazy time for our family!! Moving is not my favorite!

Since then, my brother and his wife have separated. I'm not sure how that will turn out. Personally, I think they're a great pair, but I have to trust that God will work that out between them. My brother came for Christmas day again this year and we enjoyed his company. This time he was able to spend the night in our guest room at our new house and spend a little more time with us. We loved having him!! I'm sure I'll be scrapping that event in the near future.

I hope that my brother will come down more often now that we have guest space ready and waiting. We are looking forward to hosting family and friends as much as possible! 

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

One Page Scrapbook Layout - "Up in the Attic"

The attic in our old home was a place of great mystery. Our grandkids were so intrigued and curious every time we pulled down the stairway to take something up or down. They were dying to see what was up there! Just before we moved out of our home, we gave them the opportunity to go up and check it out.

Their Daddy helped them up and down since there aren't any railings to hold onto. Look at the terrified look on their faces! I guess it wasn't nearly as much fun as they thought it might be. 😏 They took a quick look around up there at the stacks of boxes and they were done! 

This probably seems like a silly thing to scrapbook, but it's just one more memory of our home  and our moving days that I'm trying to preserve. Our boys (now grown) were up and down those steps so many times during the moving process!! They just kept bringing boxes down....so much STUFF!! They were such good troopers about it. It brings tears to my eyes every time I think about how much help they were to us!! They kept us moving forward and were so entertaining in the process. I wanted to curl up in a ball and make it all go away, but their maturity, perseverance, and sacrifice just kept us going until finally it was all done! We really can't thank them enough. I've never been more proud of the amazing young men they've become. And...did I mention my daughter-in-laws!!! Holy cow! They were hoisting furniture, boxes....all in sub zero weather, blowing snow and wind! 

We're incredibly thankful and blessed to be in our new home. Yes, we still have an attic, but this time with a real stairway and a lot less junk! 

One Page Layout - "Blessed"

I try to do life with an attitude of gratitude, but I certainly don't achieve it most of the time. Even though I have so much to be thankful for, I sometimes get stuck focusing on the small negative things.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday for that very reason. It's a reminder to focus on all of our countless blessings. It's a day to hangout with family, eat yummy food that we typically don't eat the rest of the year, and to thank God for all that he has blessed us with.

This family of mine is by far my biggest blessing. We're not perfect, and we don't always see eye to eye on everything, but we are always there for each other. The lists of wrongs are kept short, and love rules the day. Each of them bless my heart in countless different ways, that they're probably not even aware of.

This layout is from the last Thanksgiving meal we shared together in our previous home. That home holds many fond memories, and we'll never forget bringing our babies home and raising them in that special neighborhood. We're so grateful for the blessings of being able to buy it, make it our own, and enjoy it for 28 years! We're now in our new home and the blessings just keep coming. The new memories are stacking up, and we are trying to use it for God's glory in every way possible.

Thanks for stopping by today. Take time to count your blessings, even though you may be going through some rough times. Being grateful can and will change your attitude and rub off on everybody around you.

One page Fall Family Layout

It's a beautiful day and starting to feel like Fall around here! Fall is my fave! I already have my house decorated and ready to celebrate the glory of Fall. There are pumpkins and gourds on my porch... I'm sure I've jumped the gun a little, but I'm not sorry! 🍂

Here's a rare (for me) one pager from the pumpkin patch. This is my oldest son and his precious family!

I love all of the typical fall colors paired with teal! The flowers in the corner are part of the paper, so this was a super simple layout! A little bit of washi and paper strips under the matted photo and that's it! I didn't really feel like this page needed a title, so I broke my "rule" and didn't add one.

Hope you are having a great week! Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

One Page Scrapbook Layout - XOXO

Oh my goodness! This little girl totally melts my heart! The sweetness and the attitude meld together for the perfect combination of strength and beauty.

The freckles, and the mood of this picture is just too sweet. This sweet thing is the first girl in our family for a long time, so I love being able to pull out the florals, light pink ball fringe and everything girley for her layouts.

It's hard to see in this pic but I used Wink of Stella on the flower to give it some shimmer.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today for one of my rare one-pagers!

Scrapbook Layout - "Hot Shot"

This is my absolute favorite little man. Meet, Sawyer, my darling Grandson. I adore this picture of him!

This picture was taken two years ago when he was only two! Can't believe how time flies and now he's four and in pre-school. 

And....now that I'm posting this I see something wrong with this layout. Anybody else noticing it?  😒

One page Scrapbook layout - "Smooth"

This is my son, Jacob! He's my youngest and will be married to his sweetheart next weekend!! Such a rush of emotions when I think about him moving out...

I love this picture of him. This was a professional pic taken while he was part of an a Capella singing group.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!