Hey...

it's late and I am tired. I've been doing a gig and it has been pretty cool. Life is going great. Kids are great. Gearing up to shop for Christmas. My computer has been to the shop...twice. I have been loaded with viruses on my laptop. That really makes me nervous to blog hop.

I have not touched anything scrapbooky in 2 months. I don't miss it yet.

That's that in a nut shell.

--fox

Just Dang!

Hey Ladies,

I am in such a pickle. My computer has been JACKED for the last 2 weeks! I don't know what happened to it. All my pictures and my Photoshop Elements software are on that thing! Why...why didn't I back up all 2500 of my photos. It needs a professional to fix it. in the I think it can be fixed. I hope it can be fixed. You will know if it gets fixed. So int eh interim I am using my husbands computer. It is just not the same thing though. Its kind of like going to someone's house and going in their refrigerator. Its awkward and its just not mine, you know.

There is nothing exciting going on down here. It was freezing last week and now it is 78 degrees. Bought coats on Friday and Tuesday, now it's a heat wave. We are all going to get pneumonia. Remember when your mother used to say that? I am not going to complain because I'll take hot over cold any day. I am thinking my honey and I should retire in the tropics when we get old.

I have not scrapped in 25 days. Haven't touched a thing. I will get back in to it in a couple of weeks. Right now I have some bigger fish to fry. I am writing some talks for a Women's retreat that happens in November. It is consuming lots of my thought processes currently, this is very exciting and very scary. I wanted to try out for a design team but now is not the right time, I have got to get through this retreat and then the fun can return. However, I am going to do a LO for the PBP Challenge, I can't wait to see how it turns out. It is going to be a bit...dangerous. I will get that uploaded some how.

Anyway, just thought I'd check in.

Toodles.

It's happening!!!!!

Okay Girls,

I know some of you can relate to this. Do you ever have one of those moments when you realize, OMGoodness...the thing that you thought would never happen has happened...you woke up one morning and everything became clear...

...I look like my MOTHER!!!! Not only do I look like her, but sometimes I swear I act like her... I move like her, I sound like her, I say the things she says and I have her ways! Ughhh!!!! Not that Mom is bad or anything, but she's Mom. I want to be me and not her! Don't get me wrong I LOVE my mother, she's a hoot, but dang. I am getting older...my youthfulness is giving way to my transformation into my mother...(sigh). Here is the picture that says it all. It's me and my daughter.I know I am not alone in this, somebody understands my pain. LOL!!!

Have a great weekend. My friend series continues tomorrow.

-FOX

Series of Layouts-Friends #3

Hey y'all! (That is southern for Hello)

I love being from the south. Currently it is still in the upper 80's and I am loving it. We were watching a game on Saturday (Iowa vs Penn) that was being played in Pennsylvania and it was 53 degrees and raining. Poor Pennsylvanians. But at least you can tell season from season in the north.

Anyway, here is another LO I did of a wonderful woman in my life...y'all know her..it's my girl Brick. She told me once, "Girl, you know I'm from up north."
I had to stare at her for a minute and I said, "Girl, you from Tennessee!"
She said, "That's north of here!"
We both died laughing!!! She is so funny. I remember the first time I ever laughed with her...til I almost peed in my pants. We were at our small group's Bible Study (of all places). We were in the break room area where we would set up food and I remember she had me bent over from laughing. I cannot for the life of me remember what we were laughing about, but I knew at that moment she was going to be my friend forever. How neat is that?

Since then, we have become bible study partners. She sharpens me. This is my layout of her. I used Cosmo Cricket for the patterned paper and Sassafras for the chipboard clouds. The circle flowers are Scenic Route. I painted them with Tim Holtz paint and added some bling. The butterflies were puched using a Martha Stewart punch.

Thanks for looking. Have a wonderful glorious Monday!

Point Blank Period's 1st Challenge

Hello Blog Buddies!

Okay, I am taking a break with my friend series to post my first Point Blank Period layout. Point Blank Period is a blog you can find by clicking here. The ladies over there are so stinkin' talented! I am loving the layouts that have been done. The blog challenge is only ONCE a month and very creative. My girl over here sent me the info and I am so glad she did. Here is my take on the Challenge prompts:

My son took the photo of me. Not bad for a 6th grader. I did quite a bit of embossing. I use the Zing by American Crafts for embossing powder.I used very fluorescent neon colors for the pink and green. I threw in a few Sassafras stickers and Basic Grey chip board. I like how this turned out. It's....different. Thanks for looking.

Series of Layouts-Friends #2

Here is the layout I did of my girl, Renee. Renee has visited twice since we moved to FL. We have so much fun on her visits. On this last visit we scrapped, went to a rec football game, and we were supposed to go to the beach but that did not happen. It rained that weekend so we ended up going to the movies instead. We saw All About Steve with Sandra Bullock. The movie had terrible reviews, but we decided to see it anyway. We laughed so hard! I mean the kind of laugh that no sound comes out your mouth, you're stomping your foot, slappin' your thigh and tears start rolling down your cheeks. (sigh) Those are the fun times!

Everyday and every night we scrapbooked while we watched Tyler Perry plays and laughed even more. I love it when Renee and I can get together. We have way too much fun!

This page is dedicated to her. Please make note of how hard she is laughing in the bottom photo! I was having a "wardrobe malfunction" and she was crackin' up laughing about something while my "sweet" husband just kept snapping pictures!
LAYOUT DETAILS: I have been trying to incorporate circles (I see that on Sasha's LO's often, thought I'd give it a try). I used October Afternoon Cherry Hill. I also used a mist and a cherry mask from Heidi Swapp. I think the chipboard stickers are from Basic Grey Lemonade.

Thanks for stopping by have a wonderful Wednesday!

Series of Layouts-Friends #1

Hello to All,

For the next 4 posts I will be featuring a layout of my friends. You know the kind of friends that get in the trenches with you. I have several ladies who are really good to me and I will be working in the future to add them...the problem is I don't have current pictures of them. I may have to dig through the stash of old pics and work some magic.

Anyway, here is the LO of me and my sister.

The journaling says:
My Sister Michelle is my BEST friend. She knows my every secret and she loves me anyway. She is one of the greatest gifts God has ever given me. She is kind, gentle, SMART, funny, beautiful, faithful, a great mother and godly.

On the back of the pages I right more personal stuff that talks about how they effect me, change me and make me better. True friendship and real love make you better.

Y'all, I LOVE my sister. She is amazing.

Hope you like the LO. Thanks for taking a look!

First Day of School LO's

Hello Foxes! I had a ball last week when my girl Renee came for a visit. She and I scrapped for three days over the holiday weekend. We watched like 7 Tyler Perry plays and laughed. We caught a movie (All About Steve) and laughed our heads off. She also made Lemon Bars...my favorite. I found my husband eating the last Lemon Bar and I had to demand a brother give it back! He had eaten most of it but those last two bites were mine! I don't know what he was thinkin' eatin' the last one. Anyway here are my school LO's.


Thanks for stoppin' by.

Football and Layouts

Hey you guys. I am posting a picture of my son in last week's game. My son's team took a butt whoopin' like you would not believe! Here he is playing safety. However, staying true to being a little boy he still had a blast because they played in the pouring rain.
Also, I am so excited to post these LOs . These are for Scrap Pink that Scraphappy is going to host at the end of September. These will go on the Pink wall during the month of September. These are stories of people who I know and love that have been affected by Breast Cancer.

You all have a lovely day and thanks for stopping by.

Change is.....(pic Heavy)

In the last month, I have started a temporary job, cut off all my hair, visited my daddy in Ohio, took MyGirl to a photo shoot for a hair care magazine, and signed my children up for school. I have only scrapped 3 pages in a month. Do I sound pressed? Nope, 'cause I ain't. It is what it is. Here are two of the three LOs. I did these for Scraphappy back in July.

First things first, I like having a little job.I am making money for the first time in 7 years. Sweet wonderful paycheck....ahhh.

Next, I cut off all my hair and I swear I am a new women. My hair is fierce! I am FIERCE! Mr. Davis?....that is a whole 'nother subject. A brother was not too happy with my...change. He will be okay because I SWEAR I am ferocious! I am never going back to boring hair ever again...like NEVER! This chic in ATL cut my hair and she is FAB! Now I have to drive 5 hours to get my hair cut...what was I thinkin'? It is so worth it!!!! Check it out.

Next, I got to see my Daddy. I love my DADDY!!!!! (sigh) I don't know what it is, but I love him so much! I wish we didn't live 14 hours away. He is a wonderful Granddaddy. The kids look forward to playing UNO with him. It's one of the things they share with Granddaddy. He tells them he is going to burn their biscuits in UNO. Yeah, this year the seven year old beat him. Oh well.
Check out MyGirl. She is so grown up. I wish you all could have seen her in the photo shoot...she's a beast! She can take some pics. I loved her makeup and hair. These are the pics I took of her after the shoot.

Last but not least. Starting in a few weeks, my children will be in school. After 5 years I will no longer be a homeschool mom. I have mixed emotions about all of this. I am experiencing feelings of joy, happiness, elation, and excitement. Those are all emotions aren't they? My goodness, I am so excited. NO MORE PEOPLE AT HOME with ME!!!! YAY!!!! But for real, I really do have mixed emotions, the kind that will lead to dancing in the street and outbursts of random singing. August 24th is going to be a new page in the chapter of my life. In honor of back to school, how about a video (recommended by my friend Brick):

What's UP!

Hey ALL!

I had a chance to go home last week to Birmingham (where I actually have a home). We went to check on our house because we got a call that we had no water in the house and that there was a bad smell through out the house. Ummmm....huh? My house isn't even three years old yet! That is not what you want to hear! The water problem was fixed easily, but we had to stay at a hotel the first night...bummer. But the funky smell was a WHOLE 'nother issue. I can't even begin to describe that mess. It was truly a mess. Let's just say I will be returning to B'ham in a few weeks to decide if a new fridge is in order. Even though my house is in B'ham, my home is where my family is. It felt foreign to be back in AL. We could not wait to get back to Florida.

I am taking my first scrapbooking/card making class EVER! I am taking a card making class at ScrapHappy on tomorrow night. I can't wait. This chick is doing the class and she is THE BOMB! She gets a ton of her stuff published and I want to know what she knows. I will post my cards tomorrow night after class.

I am about to become an Embossing Junkie. I want everything embossing. Make sure you check out the Thinking Inking videos by Two Peas In A Bucket. They are awesome. You can find them on YouTube.

Thanks for stopping by.

Recap

I went to north Georgia last weekend and had a ball at the Scrapbook Cabin. The ladies that joined me had a ball. We scrapped, learned new techniques, and I finished my anniversary album from 2 years ago. I was so ready to finish the album that I nearly came unglued. Fortunately my friends stepped in and did my last 5 LOs. It changed my attitude completely. What I discovered on this trip was that I am never going to a FUN crop with goals! Never again. I want to use weekends like that to be creative and let my MOJO flow. Remember that, Girls. On weekend crops, allow yourself to enjoy being creative. Don't put pressure on yourself to do 100 LOs.

What I loved most about the weekend was that I spent time with my friends. We ate good and laughed all that weekend. The cabin was extremely nice. We put the Michael Jackson Tribute station on and danced brought back some of those 80's dances! (The cabin has Sirrus Radio and surround sound.) I am looking forward to next year. On our way home we stopped at Archiver's and I finally bought a Glimmer Mist and the new Basic Grey June Bug. I wanted to buy everything in that store. .....EVERYTHING!

Upon returning home I picked up MyGirl's best friend from Georgia. They have been best friend's for the last 4 years and I can see them hanging out the rest of their lives. Needless to say, I have been chauffeuring teenagers all week. Not to mention, MyGirl has Volleyball Camp at 7am every morning. We have been going to bed late and getting up REALLY early. No sleeping in this summer.

It's HOT!!!!

Hey Foxes!

It is hot in Pensacola. But who am I to talk, it has to be hotter in South FL. My husband asked me did I want to go to the beach today and I had an immediate thought of me being baked. I opted not to go. Instead we went Father's Day shopping for my husband to no avail. I think we are just going to use the money and take him to lunch or dinner. My husband is hard to shop for. How do you shop for a person who doesn't want anything? Like nothing at all. Just sucks the fun right out doesn't it? I always have a list of things that I want. Anyway, I am going to make his favorite dessert. He loves Fruit Pizza. It is a wonderful summer dessert.

This week I did a few LO's for Scraphappy. Christy gave me a few assignments. She wanted me to do a Father's Day LO and a Graduation LO. Here they are:

Thanks for stopping by. Have a lovely weekend.
Holla' back,
FOX!

Summer is here

Here is a page I completed yesterday. The pearls are from Opaline from Basic Grey and the butterflies are a Martha Stewart punch. I used my Fiskars punches for the the scalloped edges on the cream and teal paper. I like how clean and simple this layout is.

I plan on doing several pages this week. Next week I have to prepare to leave for my scrapbook weekend. I am going to finally finish the album I have been working on for 2 years. Looking forward to that.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek. Have a beautiful day.

Hey....

School is finally over! We have been working so hard the last few weeks to get school done. I have been totally disciplined in not allowing my time to slip away. I usually can look at blogs and get totally swept up. But I am really going to enjoy the summer. I just had to get the schooling done! I am looking so forward to my weekend in the mountains with my girls in a few weeks. I need the break.

We had VBS this week at church. I was trying to avoid volunteering but it didn't work (not very Christian like was I?). I got roped in though. However, I had a blast. I was assigned to work with the Kindergarden and 1st grade. They were AWESOME! I enjoyed being there. We sang, we played, we had popscicles, we learned about Joseph and made some cool crafts!

Today is MyGirl's b-day. She is a whooping fourteen years old today, and look how goofy she can be. This is how she was entertaining us at dinner (don't tell her I put this pic out here). Is that not the most ridiculous thing you have ever seen? They want to be so grown and then do stuff like this. For her b-day she has had me cookin' all day. Her first favorite meal was chicken salad sandwiches. That was fine, but then for dinner I cooked fried chicken with barbecue glaze, hashbrown casserole and baked beans. It was all good, and I made them clean the kitchen.

Anyway, I will be scrapbookin' this week because I can...finally. Even though I have not scrapped in two weeks it did not keep me from shopping. I bought a new lace border punch, and picked up some supplies to work on LO's for Scraphappy. Plus, I have finally met two people at church who want to scrapbook or have just started the hobby. Yeah! I need some scrapbook buddies down here.

I have missed being out here in blogland. Thanks for stopping by!
-Fox

A layout

Here is a LO I did for Scraphappy's Blog. Christy over at Scraphappy is allowing me to be on her Design Team. This is a big deal for me because I know I need to stretch more. Here is the LO that I included on that blog.


Have a good weekend.

My Weekend and some LO's

Hey Everybody! Happy Memorial Day! We are about to drive over to Destin to the beach! YEAH! But I wanted to check in with you guys before we left.

My weekend was good. I had a surprise! My mom called last Monday and said they were coming in for the weekend. My mom, grandma and step-dad flew in on Friday and stayed until yesterday afternoon. My grandma will be 93 this year. She is so cute and funny! She likes to joke around and laugh. My mom is constantly moving. She was constantly sweeping or cleaning something, even the cobwebs on the OUTSIDE of the house! My step-dad has to be one of the most gentle and laid back men on the planet. We drove over to the beach but they just wanted to peak at the beach. They got out and walked to the end of the pier, looked at the water, turned around and got back in the car! That was enough for them! We had a good time with them here, and the kids loved their being here! My little one talked theirs heads off and just like grandparents do, they listened intently. My oldest tried to rat me out to my mother and it worked! Yeah, we are tough parents and I am NOT going to apologize for it. I do what I do 'cause I have to not because I want to. How is it that my mother used to take NO crap off me and then she became a grandmother and thinks I'm too hard? Grandparents! They are a trip! Gotta love 'em. Oh wait, I am know remembering my grandmother getting me out of a few tight spots with Mom......Grandparents rock!

Also, here are a few pics of some layouts I did for Scraphappy. The LOs are really simple and easy for anyone. I like how they turned out. My favorite part of this one is the pink tone in the photo. Yes, pink can work for guys!

On this one I really like the photo. It was taken in the "negative" format. It is my son jumping off my sofa onto my sofa cushions. He knows better, but he did it anyway! Then had the audacity to get his sisters to take pictures of him jumping off my sofa! But it made a cool layout (I was inspired by Haberdawoman). You can't tell from the photos but I used foil letters and foil paper.

Here are the other two LO's.

Can I get some help here please?

Okay, my Peeps!

I am not one to air the dirty laundry ('cause mine is currently in the floor of my closet), but I told y'all I needed some advice. Here is my confession to blog land; my friends and family already know this about me:

I am a messy scrapbooker and I don't know how to stop! (see below) Most people have after pictures when they get it all clean....yeah....NO! There will be none of that here. Plea-a-a-s-s-se somebody help me! Did you notice the box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch on the table? I. Did. Not. Do. That! My kids are not helping me out here, but I can't blame this on them.

How do you keep it neat when you scrapbook? I can do one page and it look like a tornado came through. Do y'all have those friends who are neat scrapbookers? I do. I want to be like THEM! I can take up a table by myself at a crop. I look over at Renee who unfortunaetly is usually sharing said table with me (bless her heart), and the tiny spot that she has left is all orderly ....drives me nuts! She can't explain to me how she does it, she is just a neat person!

Come on NEAT scrapbookers, can you help a sister out with some PRACTICAL solutions? I need some Ex-Messy scrapbookers to let me know what their methods are to staying neat while scrapbooking.

See you later, Girls!

But Wait, There's More

This is what I found on my door step today.
I saw the box and thought, "Chuck didn't tell me he ordered any books." (My husband loves to read.) I picked up the box and to my surprise, MY name was on the box. YEAH!!!! But who is it from? Where is it from? It said Scarlet Lime from Idaho on the return address. WHAT???

I tore the box open and look what was inside!
Yummy goodness!!! Yummy-wonderfulness!

Here area few of my favorite items from the kit.

Then I thought, but who would send me such a thoughtful, sweet gift? Who would send this to me while I am here in FL? I started calling and found out IT WAS FROM THE MOST WONDERFULEST SISTER LIKE EVER!!!!! My sister Michelle! (No, we really do have the same parents and everything.) She sent it too me! I was totally caught off guard. I asked her, "Why didn't you tell me?" She said, "I wanted to see how you would react if it was a surprise." How cool is that. (Sigh) Isn't she sweet. I am going to have to dedicate a blog entry to her, maybe next month because she has a birthday coming up. Maybe I'll include some photos of us from back in the day.

So, to my-most-wonderfulest sister-like-ever, I love you and thank you for my birthday gift. It was a true surprise and an amazing gift. You totally ROCK! Thanks for spoiling me!

Bye to all my blog-land friends. Thanks for reading, I'll see you guys tomorrow. I will be requesting some much needed scrapbooking advise from anybody willing to give it!

A Mini Album

Hey Y'all!

Here is the mini album I was working on for Grandma Carolyn. She will be here Saturday, so my child will be able to give it to her in person. I think she is going to love it. I am not sure Grandma Carolyn knows too many people that scrapbook, so I think she is going to love it. There is one blank page that MyGirl is going to have to do the journaling. Mini albums are usually fun and I like to do them. It feels like you've accomplished something. The album and paper are gifts I received for my birthday last year (I told y'all I hold on to stuff). If you can tell, the paper coordinates with the album.

These are my favorite pages. I got this idea from an Elsie recipe card, and it works for me!

Okay, in this last picture I actually sewed that stitch on myself. If you know me you know I can't sew. But I ain't gon' lie, Y'all; I did the stitch, threaded the machine, and the bobbin by myself! It ain't perfect but I did it....I did. Maybe next time the stitch will actually make it on the cardstock, but WHATEVER! I sewed.

Thanks for stopping bye and have a wonderful evening and a beautiful day!

Holla'!

Hey, Hey, Hey!

Okay, when was the last time y'all have seen What's Happening? Dude, I was telling my kids about ReRun and they looked at me and said, "Who?" How can you not know ReRun. So I had to take them out to You Tube to see a little bit of What's Happening? I am cracking up just thinking about it! That is when T.V. was good and parents didn't have to fear jail for handling their kids! Gotta love it.

Check it out:

The Party is Finally Over....

...sort of! This weekend was a BAWL!!!! Y'all Renee came down to visit me and let's just say we enjoyed ourselves. It took me all of Sunday and Monday to recuperate from staying up late. She arrived Thursday evening around 7:30 and by 8:30 that evening we were off to Maurice's, TJ Maxx and Target! Renee got this AWESOME black dress, it is sooooo fly y'all. She looked amazing in it! She better take a pic in it and I'll post it. If they had it my size I would have gotten one and then acted senial when my husband saw the charges! It was that kind of dress! Anyway, we returned home and started scrapbooking and talking...that lasted 'til 4 am. Not to mention that Renee gave me my birthday gifts. Check it out.

That's right, she got me another Vera Bradley purse with matching wallet. (She got me a fly pink back pack by Vera Bradley at Christmas.)

She also got me these Tim Holtz Stamps that are so off the hook, and the best white opaque stamping ink that I have ever seen. Plus, she knows I am trying to amp-up my makeup game, so she got me a ULTA gift card, too. Renee is like the best gift giver on the planet...like EVER! She totally rocks all the way around. Too bad for you guys that you can't have her be your friend, too. She is so fun and funny. I love my friend lots and lots! I think my husband's gift-giving has come up since having her as my friend...I think he tries to "out gift" her (which is really a challenge). I just "hate" to be in the middle of such gift-giving competition. Poor me.... hee-hee-hee!

Friday morning after 2 hours of sleep I got my oldest up and off to school and then tried to rest...that was useless. By 11am Renee and I were off to ScrapHappy in Pensacola to pick up a few goodies.
I also swung by Hobby Lobby and picked up a set of Elsie stamps on clearance. I love clearance, don't you? We scrapbooked til midnight. By then I was literally sick from being so tired.

Saturday we were off to the beach by 11am and Renee and I laid on that beautiful beach until 4pm. It was wonderful. Just me, Renee, my iPod and the ocean (plus some snacks). It was nice to hang out with just my gal pal. No husbands, no kids. Plus, I actually did not have on a sweater this time. It was a warm 87 degrees with blue skies. I am sure I am 3 shades darker--gotta love that!

After the beach we came home, got dressed up and went to dinner and a movie. We saw Ghosts of Girlfriends Past...save your money on that one girls. Can you say LAME!? Ugh. Anyway, dinner was nice, we ate at Skopelos on the Bay. The stinky part is that I have no pictures of my weekend. What kind of scrapper am I? There was just too much fun to be had to fiddle with a camera!

Well ladies, my birthday party will be over for sure this weekend when I get a massage at the spa and go spend my ULTA gift card. Yep, the party will be over for sure. Yet, I still look forward to my scrapbook weekend at the end of June. We are going here for some fun.

Thanks for looking ladies and have a wonderful day. See ya' tomorrow! I promise that my blog slacking is over!

Sorry Y'all

Hey everybody! I am so sorry I have not blogged in a while. See what had happened was....I have been celebrating my birthday for the past four days. This has been a wonderful b-day. My love language is gifts and my husband was speaking my language. I have a few pics to kind of give you a few ideas of how the last four days have gone. Thursday morning they surprised me with one of these:Plus a gift certificate to the SPA. Chuck had already made the appointment for me and everything.

That evening: Chuck and I went to a little restaurant. It was quaint and the food was good. Our picture is dorky but I love it. I forgot to widen the lens to get our entire faces.Friday, he came home early and took me shopping. Our whole family went and here are just a few of my goodies:

My first pair of skinny jeans, my 13 year old thought I should try them. I did. I love how they look on me. I gotta have a beach hat and this is my favorite kind.I made out like a bandit. I ended up with a dress, four pairs of pants, six shirts, 2 pairs of earrings, an itunes card and my hat. Love my hat.

Saturday, I was treated to the SPA, and I received a card from my DADDY with CASH!! Thanks Dad! We also took the kids to a roller skating birthday party for one of their friends. Yeah, my man tried to get on skates...that was funny.

Sunday after church we went to the beach for the afternoon. It was 80 degrees and I was still cold. It is so windy out there. I still enjoyed it though. The kids played and Chuck and I took turns dozing off. We came home, made dinner and then my son took me on a date to see Wolverine: X-Men Origins. It was good! I love action movies and I am such a MARVEL kind of girl anyway.

Needless to say my family really made me feel special. They were so sweet to me. What's crazy is that I got no scrapbook stuff. Nothing...nada, and I don't even care. I had such a wonderful time with my family. Here are the "cards" my babies made me.

But wait, there's more. This weekend coming up my sweet friend Renee is coming for a visit. We are going to have a ball. So for a total of 7 days it's all about me. Gotta love that.

See y'all later. Thanks for stopping by and sorry for being such a blog slacker!