4 New Layouts to Share!!

Snow Fun!! (Fresh snow - fun for the big kids and a new adventure for Camden!)

Cam @ 1 ( I took these pics of Camden on the morning of his first birthday. I love them! I think they captured his sweet and wild personality perfectly!)

Christmas Princess (Afton dressed up for Christmas festivities. She asked that I use some of her Princess Christmas cards on a layout so here it is!)

Christmas @ Home ( 12 pics of Christmas morning all ion one layout!!)

Papercrafts and Home Decor

I am finding more and more that papercrafting is becoming part of the way I decorate my home. For instance, these 2 portrait collages in my home are based scrapbooking sketches I found online:

Here is the one in our living room:



Here is the one in the kid's bathroom:



Cute eh? Can you guess which pictures are Bryn? Afton? Camden?

(The top 2 are Bryn, the bottom 2 are Afton and Camden is the far right.)

I had a friend ask me to post a picture of the wall art I made for Camden's nursery. They are simply canvases that I painted, then mod-podged pictures that I had pieced out of leftover scrapbook paper. They hang over the twin bed I have in Cam's bedroom (this bed was very useful when he was an infant and I needed to crash closeby!)

My "Journal Your Christmas" Album

It is complete!! I decided I would be done creating new pages on the first of January (you can continue until the 12th day after Christmas if you so choose!) And here I am, on the 10th of January, actually clipping the final finished pages into my album. I could have been done sooner except I kept forgetting to print the photos for Jan. 30 (A Year in Review) and New Years Eve.
This is a project I am really proud of. It made me think about lots of aspects of Christmas that often slip my mind during the hub-bub of the holidays. I also like what I have done creatively. I have never worked in a 6x12 format so it was challenge to think long and skinny instead of big and square like I am used to. But I like how it has turned out and I will definitely make a mini-book in this size again.

Click on the little picture and you will be taken to a slideshow of my Journal.

Okay- Let's Try a Slideshow!!

I love sharing my scrapbooking layouts on my blog, but for some reason, unless I make my pics REALLY small, 2 page layout pics don't fit. So, I think I have found a solution. I am going to try a slideshow from photbucket.com.

Well here goes:


Sure, it looks little now, but if you click on it, you should be moved to where you can see the slideshow.

This layout contains a ton of pictures from Bryn's 5th birthday. I can't believe he turned 5 already! People said it would go fast, but this is ridiculous!!

Here is sweet picture of little Bryn almost 5 years ago:



Cute, huh?

We took the kids on a ride on Santa's Train near Orangeville. They loved it! And they were very-well behaved to boot! I managed to get some really cute shots of them while they enjoyed sugar cookies (made by Mrs. Claus, of course!) and some hot chocolate. Then Santa paid us a personal visit at our seats. Very exciting! (Click on the little pic!)


I used my new embossing button punch on this layout. I LOVE IT!

The Santa Claus Parade - what a cold day, but great memories for the kids!



Bryn and Afton couldn't wait to put our tree up this year. So, our artificial Douglas fir came out of the box on November 23rd, right after the Santa Claus parade. After enjoying it for 6 weeks, I think the tree is coming down tomorrow. As sad as that will be, it will mean one less thing for Camden to get into!! (Click on the little pic!)

Journal Your Christmas - Days 11 - 15

Day 11 invited us to take pictures of our Christmas tree and journal about how we decorate it. Does it wear homemade ornaments? Is it matchy-matchy and decorated carefully only by the grown-ups?? The pocket holds pics of my 2 trees and some favourite ornaments.



Day 12 - Christmas Past - Journal about a favourite memory of Christmas Past. The picture here is of my father and I, circa 1977. I am about 18 months old.



Day 13 - Journal about Christmas music - What are your favourites? What can't you stand? Does the music start in December, or earlier??



Day 14 - Journal about the procedure on Christmas morning. What order are presents unwrapped in? Do you take turns? Who hands out the presents??



Day 15 - Visitors: Who is coming to visit this holiday? Family? Friends? Where are we visiting? Are there long journeys ahead?



Thanks for looking!!

New Toys!!

Being a kindergarten teacher, and the teacher of 2 classes (40 kids in all!), I receive A LOT of Christmas presents. This year was no exception! Two very smart parents bought me Michaels gift cards - and I couldn't wait to spend them!! I can't believe I have held those cards for 4 whole days before making it to Mississauga to spend them. Amongst other things, these are my new, most favourite-est toys:



Three lovely punches from Martha Stewart. I really like her stuff, but I always find it too expensive. So, when someone is giving me the $$$ to spend - I spend it freely!!

I want to highlight the button punch. It is SO COOL! I had seen it on another blog
http://scrappyfairy.blogspot.com/ (A very cool blog by the way!) and knew I had to have it too!

When you squeeze this punch, it cuts the disc shape, punches the four holes and embosses the raised cirlce around the edge. In the words of my oldest son - "Way Awesome!"

Journal Your Christmas Days 7- 10

Day 7 - Write a "To Do " list and a reminder to yourself about not letting the stress of Christmas interfere with enjoying it!! My list and note are contained in the pocket:



Day 8- Do you see what I see? Take pictures of things that remind you of Christmas around your home. My pictures are in the mini envelope.



Day 9 -What traditions have you kept from your childhood? What new ones have you created with your family? My traditions ae written in the mini-book attached to the page:




Day 10 - How do you feel about wrapping? Do you wrap every parcel perfectly? Or is pretty paper a waste when you know it is just going to be demolished by your family? I put my journaling inside the folded page, written on the cardboard from a package of sticky present labels: