Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Today Only - JUST TIL MIDNIGHT



Fun FREE digital scrapbooking downloads (a total of 12 of them) from The Ettes & Company. If you've been following these talented ladies, you'll know that they started their own company and just launched their own website. For the past twelve days they have offered a download a day for free - today they are giving everyone who missed it a chance to download al twelve in one day. But this offer is only good today so hurry over to the Ettes site and check it out!

Monday, December 22, 2008

Fun FREEBIES for Your Christmas Wrapping

Totally cute downloadable Christmas gift tags HERE and HERE - courtesy of a couple of my favorite sites!

Christmas Gift Suggestions

I'm all done shopping, and as is the case when I finish early, I keep seeing other things I would like to buy/make/give my gift recipients. And I have to keep reminding myself that I've already spent more than I should! But I came across this quote from Oren Arnold awhile ago and wanted to offer it up for everyone:

Christmas Gift Suggestions:
  • To your enemy, forgiveness
  • To an opponent, tolerance
  • to a friend, your heart
  • to a customer, service
  • to all, charity
  • to every child, a good example
  • to yourself, respect

Think about what a wonderful place this world would be if these were really the gifts we gave each other.

Friday, December 19, 2008

Too Many Photos

Okay - so I'm doing the "Journal Your Christmas" "December Daily" "Photo-a-Day" thing, and I'm really enjoying it, but keeping up with it is touchy at best - things like a Disney trip with no internet access, and having to go into the office keep interfering. Oh well - here's some more of my December photos.
O' Christmas Tree. In the real versus artificial controversy, we fall on the artificial side. I grew up with an artificial tree because my Mom was very allergic to pine. As an adult I think I originally stuck with it because it is what I knew - but at this point - this tree is 20 years old and still going strong. We bought it on an after Christmas 75% off sale at Sears back in January of 1988. It's a pain to assemble and it's not pre-lit, but it has held up beautifully and we haven't paid for a tree in 20 years! In the sentimental versus theme tree debate, we are definitely sentimental. Almost every ornament on the tree was purchased to commemorate a specific year, like, or event in our lives. When my children leave home, they will have enough ornaments to decorate their own trees without buying anything!!
The Stockings were Hung by the Chimney with Care. It's nice after 13 years of having the fireplace hidden behind a bookcase (to protect young children) to finally have it uncovered and functional again! Last year was the first year in their memory that our children's stockings have hung by the chimney. It used to be along the rails of the staircase. The stockings themselves have a history. The oldest one of this bunch is the middle stocking and was made for Sarah by her Nana. It's beautiful with old lace and bits of velvet, buttons, and other "stuff". I liked it so much that I set to making matching ones for Rachel and Rebecca. And although they aren't the same as the one Nana made, they are still quite pretty and have been used for years. Then I had to have something almost as wonderful for Jay and I which is how the two on the far left came into being.
Gift Wrapping - is truly not my thing. But my solution has been to assign a paper to each kid and all of their gifts get wrapped in that paper. Then they don't know whose box is whose! (No tags). Here's a sneak peak into the storage closet at Rachel & Becca's gifts.
Christmas Eve gifts. Every year since I was a young child we've been opening one gift on Christmas Eve - our new pajamas! And I continued that tradition for my own children. This year I've put a new twist on it with Christmas Eve boxes. These will be re-used year to year and contain their Christmas p.j.s, an ornament, and a photobook. We did ornaments for the kids each year for a long time, then stopped. I'm starting that back up, but trying to stay away from the Hallmark and find something really meaningful to them. This year it's Jonas Brothers. The photobooks are a new addition, but something I hope to give them each Christmas as well.
Disney decorates the Castle for Christmas. We went to Disney World to celebrate Jay's 50th birthday - mostly because he's just a big kid at heart. We managed to be in the right place at the right time for the "Wishes" ceremony of lighting up the castle and the fireworks. At night, lit up, the castle looks like it is covered in icicles. It's actually icicle lights on netting, but the effect is awesome!
The Christmas Tree at the Grand Floridian Resort lobby. Almost four stories tall! This photo was taken from the second floor.
Gingerbread House at Grand Floridian Resort lobby. This is actually the size of a large playhouse - adults fit inside it. And it is all gingerbread - 440 pounds of flour and I don't remember the other ingredients. It was huge and smelled wonderful. They sold gingerbread cookies and other treats from a window on the other side. The flowers around the window are icing like flowers on a birthday cake.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

4 Days of Photos

Day One: A New Tradition In the Making? Here is the cover page for my December Journal along with a shot of the album itself. And this photo will be used along with the journaling about WHY I am doing a December Journal.


Day Two: The Joys of Online Shopping. I had 90% of my Christmas shopping done BEFORE Thanksgiving and I never left home! I also took advantage of Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, again without leaving home, driving all over, wasting gas, polluting the ozone, standing in lines, dealing with cranky clerks.... need I say more? This is two days worth of deliveries!


Day Three: sorry can't tell you the caption to this one! I'm offering a scrapbooking goody in the mail to the first person who can tell me exactly what this is a photo of! And you have to be very specific - what it is and where it is located. Isn't it pretty???

Another Day Three Photo: Office Party. Loved the table decorations.


Day Four: PERFECTION. This photo was taken on 11/29. We were celebrating Jay's 50th birthday early so Sarah could participate before returning to college. I had given Jay a photobook as one of his gifts. At this moment the girls were looking through the book with their Dad, laughing and reminiscing. It was one of those rare family moments that mothers around the world live and breathe for. It was... PERFECT.

Monday, December 1, 2008

Two More Sources of Inspiration

Lisa Day, as a design team member for Freckle Friends, is participating in a December album project called "Merry Days". She will be posting the daily prompt for Merry Days on her blog So if you need another idea of what to put on those daily pages, check with Lisa!

Jessica Sprague is doing a December Photo-A-Day on her gallery. So you can look at her gallery and see what everyone is taking photos of. I'm a little jealous of people who got to post beautiful snow pictures... we've got grey and rain.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Combining Ideas

So, no sooner do I post about combining the Journal Your Christmas class and Ali's ideas for December Daily then, what do you know, Ali posts a whole slew of Christmas related projects and actually suggests that you could combine the two ideas! I'm patting myself on the back that I thought of it BEFORE I read it on someone's blog!

From Ali's blog:
Shimelle's Journal You Christmas Class : this is how I got started a few years back doing something creative to celebrate the holiday season. If you are looking for daily jump-starts and specific prompts this is definitely a highly-recommended class. The difference between Shimelle's class and what I am doing for December Daily is that I am simply documenting the days whereas Shimelle is guiding you through memory and creative prompts each day from December 1 through January 6th. You could definitely combine the two. Another cool thing is that once you sign up you are considered and alumni and are able to participate in following years for no cost.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Scrapbooking Update and Journal Your Christmas

At the beginning of October I started this little blog to tell you all what I'm up to, share some of my creative side, and improve on my skills in the digital world. Not sure how much I've accomplished, but I have to tell you - I put together that gorgeous little "Gratitude Album" and managed to keep up with it for a week. A few sporadic days since then, but not much to get excited about. I'm disappointed with myself, but moving on. I'll try to fill it out with pictures from Thanksgiving Day!

Before I had even gotten the Gratitude Album underway, a new project sparked my interest - the December Daily Album as shown on Ali Edward's Blog. To help me live in the present and enjoy the Christmas season. To push me to get past the commercialism and really feel the spirit of the season. But I really didn't intend to get as "fancy" as Ali showed it with the different size pages and all - I just wanted a day by day album to document December. So I bought an 8x8 album, papers, etc. and planned a simple themed album following instructions from a couple of Simple Scrapbooks publications. Well, the base of the album is in the process of construction and I plan to get the base pages done so that during December I really only have to add photos and journaling to document each day. In all my spare time of course.

Well.... with my lack of stellar progress on the Gratitude Album I was starting to stress over what I'm going to PUT in this album each day. And as I was stressing, and blog surfing, I came across a post on Donna Downey's blog telling me all about this great class she is taking called "Journal Your Christmas". So I followed the link (go ahead, click on it, my story can wait) and... prayers answered! A native Kansas City gal now living in London, Shimelle Laine, is going to send me a prompt every day from December 1st through January 6th with ideas for photos, journaling and creativity. So I can just follow those prompts to fill my album! I'm really going to get this one done! Ask me to post pages! Hold me accountable!

Now, for even more fun - Shimelle is holding a little contest. If I post the photo and link on my blog, I can win a refund of my $30 class fee. Okay that would be cool, but it's the next part that really rocks my world. If I'm chosen as the random winner, I also win a FREE pass for a friend! So if you want to Journal Your Christmas leave a comment! If I win, I'll choose one of the posts to join me! Tell me why you'd like a FREE PASS to Journal Your Christmas!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Are you an ALIEN?

I read this on another blog and thought it was interesting enough to share...

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too
Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.
i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.
The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid! Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.
The rset can be a taotl mses and you can siltl raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.
Azanmig huh? Yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!


Pretty cool, eh?

Monday, November 17, 2008

I'm in College Again

at least in my dreams anyway. I have this recurring dream (nightmare?) that I'm back in college. But always when I have this dream I am missing classes, in danger of flunking out, or taking final exams without the benefit of having attended any of the classes. Last night it went like this - I was back in college with a full course load and a scholarship to protect. I was talking to a young, good-looking teacher's assistance, trying to find out my grade in an English class and asking what it would cost me (grade-wise) to turn in the latest paper a day late, since I had entirely blanked out on doing the paper. Not only that, I didn't even know what the topic was or what was expected of me. I also had no idea how I had done on any of the work handed in prior to this - it seems nothing was ever returned so I had no idea of my status, or if I was doing poorly, where it was I had fallen short. As he reviewed my grades, seems I had two nearly perfect papers and two that had fallen in the "D" range, so I averaged out to a low "B". Well, if you know me at all, you know that is simply not acceptable. I don't do "B" work. I do "A" work. But here I was with a low B and a late paper in my best subject. Now, to make matters worse, I had missed putting my math course on my course schedule and hadn't attended a single class since the first one or two. My next stop would be to go see the math professor and find out if I could somehow make up for everything I had missed and still finish and pass that course. I woke up in a mild panic. I am now back in my real life, way past college having graduated quite successfully thank you, but wondering why I keep having this crazy dream. Is it a symbol of feeling overwhelmed? That I'm not doing enough or doing "good enough"? That I'm afraid of failure??? Any dream interpreters reading my blog want to help me out here?

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Mouse in the House

Our excitement for yesterday was having a mouse in the house - or more specifically - a "microtus pennsylvanicus" or meadow vole. (photo borrowed from the internet - we were way too busy trying to get the thing OUT to take photos!) This is the second time we've had one of these little visitors - the first critter - last fall when we still had a patio door off the family room - was much cuter with big ears. This guy was just fat - but still amazingly fast. At one point we had him cornered and Jay actually grabbed the critter in his bare hands - the critter still got away. Rachel and Becca didn't want any part of it. I only screamed once - when furballus superfasticus ran from under the sofa to under the love seat right between my legs! Ashley was interested and took part in the hunt for awhile too. After chasing Sir Pest around the family room for awhile, he finally darted out seemingly the same way he'd come in - through a space at the bottom of the garage door where he had apparently chewed a hole through the door sweep. So we discovered an immediate need for household repairs and the furry little rodent escaped with his life (which was infinitely preferable to having to place traps, so we are all happy about that)! No doubt he will now spend the Winter exacting his revenge on my front lawn for being so unceremoniously chased out.


During the course of chasing this little guy around the family room, he left us lots of little presents - behind the t.v., under the sofa, in the far corners of the room. So now furniture has been moved and the room has been thoroughly vacuumed, including the cat fur behind the sofa, and the carpet spot cleaned in every area when I found evidence of the little furball. I can honestly say my family room floor hasn't been this clean since the carpet was originally installed. Also thanks to our furry friend, and a quick trip to Home Depot, we now have a new door sweep and strip foam insulation at the base of the garage door. Meaning less draft from the garage into the family room. Might even save on our heating bill this winter! All because of a mouse.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

YES WE CAN!

Right now I'm so proud to be an American! I stayed up last night only long enough to see that the election was moving in the direction of change, but not long enough to see anyone declared as winner. This morning I was anxious to sign on and see how the map played out, how many electoral votes each candidate had, and more importantly, how many POPULAR votes (can't we just dump the electoral college already?). What I wasn't prepared for was the video of Obama's acceptance speech.
Click on the link to listen to his speech. Obama is clearly a man who understands the law of attraction and how to reach into the hearts of a crowd. His speech moved me to tears (something I'm not easily given to). I also thought McCain's concession speech was very classy and well done. I don't agree with all of Obama's ideas or positions and I'm as concerned as the next guy about the economy, taxes, my 401K, etc. But he gives me hope - that true change (better, not just different) is in the air. And I hope all McCain supporters will heed his request to set aside the differences and work together to rebuild America. So to America, YES WE CAN!

Monday, November 3, 2008

My Gratitude Album

From the November/December 2008 issue of Simple Scrapbooks, I decided to try the "Gratitude" Album for this month.

Before Photo:
I bought this cute little album at Target. It is a 4x6 horizontal orientation photo album with enough sleeves for up to 100 photos. Since I'm planning to use 2 pages per day, I would have some leftover space at the end, but I saved about 12 pages for Thanksgiving to add everyone else's thoughts on gratitude and photos of our family gathering. I downloaded Cathy Z.'s template for the jounaling from simplescrapbooksmag.com

After photo:

But it wasn't quite right for the Fall colors I wanted to use, so I set to work altering the cover - removed the pink ribbon, painted with Making Memories "meadow" acrylic paint, added rub-on letters, some old stickers, and new piece of ribbon and voila! What do you think?

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

The Weather in Perkasie

I think someone forgot to tell Mother Nature that it is two months yet til Winter and way too early in the season to be snowing in Perkasie!

Monday, October 27, 2008

HumanKIND - More thoughts on the 3Day

It's not every day that you'll see a grown man playing crossing guard in the middle of a busy city street wearing a fuzzy pink helmet and tutu. In fact, some of what you see on the 3 Day Walk would be considered inappropriate, rude, or even obscene in any other setting. Not here. Because this walk is designed to raise awareness and funds to end breast cancer, folks have carte blanche to use every euphemism known. And they do. Signs, pins, and t-shirts with slogans like "Boobies Make Me Smile", "Save the TaTas", and "60 Miles for Bust" are everywhere. And it is good. And it is appropriate. And it is funny. It makes us smile through the pain of blisters and tight muscles.

Something else is everywhere - Kindness. Plain and Simple. The thousands of people walking the breast cancer 3 Day, the generous folks who give their time to Crew the breast cancer 3 Day, even the "walker stalkers" like the Boobilicious Girls,

and the everyday people who come out to cheer all have one thing in common. They have gathered out of the goodness of their hearts to support a cause they believe in. It is a symbiotic relationship with each group drawing support and energy from the others. For three days everyone I passed on the streets smiled, cheered, told me what a great job I was doing and how awesome I was. I'm not at all surprised that there are 3 Day addicts who walk in these events all over the country. Because it's not everyday that you get to hear someone being truly appreciative because you are being who you are. And honestly, where else in the world am I gonna go where someone is gonna tell me that I "look Boobilicious"? Honestly. Tell me where.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

3 Days, 60 Miles, 3157 Walkers, $8.1 Million Dollars

My 3-Day Adventure in the Philadelphia Breast Cancer Walk is over. I spent 3 Days living in a world the way it should be - filled with kindness and caring, filled with people cheering you on and cheering you up. The support from the Crew, Volunteers, and just spectators along the way re-established my faith in humanKIND. I'm not really much of a "joiner" so I didn't talk to a lot of people and I didn't learn everyone's personal connection to breast cancer. It was more than enough for me to know that each one of the 3100 people I was walking with had either suffered personally or knew someone who had and that here was a group of 3100 people who were willing to put their body and soul into making a difference so that the next generation might know a WORLD WITHOUT BREAST CANCER. It was powerful, it was affirming, it was exhausting. Click on the Link above for a short video of the media coverage.

How did I do? I survived freezing cold weather, leaky tents, bad food, a couple of extremely rude Philadelphians, sore feet, porta-potties, aching muscles and my own lack of faith in myself. If I told you that I walked the entire route (23 miles) on Day 1, roughly half the route (10 miles) on Day 2, and the entire route (16 miles) on Day 3, would you be impressed with my accomplishment or disappointed that I didn't complete the full 60?

Lessons Learned:

It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. I didn't walk the entire 60 miles, but I did walk most of it and I make no apologies for those times that I couldn't walk. I crossed the finish line absolutely elated and with a sense of personal accomplishment and respect for myself that no one can ever take away from me.

I am NOT a "happy camper". I think I knew this going in, but one night in a teeny tiny leaky nylon pup tent in 37 degree weather confirmed it beyond all doubt. And did you know that sleeping in the cold causes your muscles to cramp?

I have Hip Flexors - who knew?: In human anatomy, the hip flexors are a group of skeletal muscles that act to flex the femur onto the lumbo-pelvic complex, i.e. "pull the knee upward". I had never heard of this particular group of muscles and certainly didn't know the importance of stretching them until I got to the point (upon waking up on Day 2) of not being able to take a single step without pain and not being able to step up onto a curb without excruciating pain.

Visiting the Medical Tent is a GOOD Thing. I should have done it on Day 1. I thought I could sleep off the muscle soreness - hah! Thank you Dr. Keith for putting me back together on Day 2 so that I could continue walking!

Cheering People and Music Help You Push Through the Pain. Probably the BEST thing about the 3Day was all the people who came out to cheer the walkers on - who stood on the sidelines and clapped and high-fived and told us we could do it - who handed out water, candy, homemade cookies, and hot coffee, who blared their radios to give us a beat to walk to. Just about every time that we thought we couldn't take another step, we would turn a corner and find someone cheering us on - some of these people reappeared multiple times on the route all 3 days. Special shout-outs to "High Five" and "Woo" - a couple of crazy guys wearing pink and green striped knee highs and tees to match their names who seemed to always be there and to the "Boobalicious Girls" who also reappeared in multiple places through-out the walk and told us all how boobalicious we all were. And thanks to the family in Haverford who was handing out hot cider on freezing Sunday morning. I needed that! If you ever have the opportunity to go out and cheer for a group of walkers, bikers, runners, whatever - I highly recommend it - it makes a WORLD of difference!

There is no shame in taking a sweep van. When your body can't take it another minute, taking a ride is okay. There were so many times on Day 2 that I was ready to quit. I was in tears, depressed, tired, and felt like a grey cloud was just hanging over me. I wanted to call Jay to come pick us up. But the ladies driving the sweep van were awesome. They didn't make us feel ashamed for taking a ride. The point of the 3Day Walk isn't to kill yourself, but to push yourself to your outer limits, recognizing the pain that your friends and family members who have suffered from breast cancer endured. I can honestly say I pushed myself to that limit and beyond.

It is amazing what a warm bed and flushing toilet will do for your spirits. After a particularly rough Day 2, Deanna and I checked out of camp and into a hotel. Waking up Sunday morning in a warm bed made a world of difference. Not only had we given those hip flexors a chance to relax a little, but our spirits were lightened as well. I can't say walking on Day 3 didn't hurt (it did), but it was much easier to push through without that grey cloud hanging around.

I am grateful for good shoes, body glide(yeah - no blisters!), cheering people, motrin, chiropractors, cheering people, music, cheering kids, sweep vans, awesome crew, running water, flush toilets, warm beds, hot food, hot cider, cheering people, my ability to endure, the kindness of others, the community of walkers, oh - and did I mention? - cheering people!

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

The Time Has Come

Help me reach my goal for the Philadelphia Breast Cancer 3-Day!

Only THREE DAYS left now before the Philadelphia Breast Cancer 3Day Walk. I'm fighting a terrible sore throat, popping Vitamin C like crazy, and hoping to be over that before I actually embark on this journey, but I'll be out there walking whether I can talk or not!

I did not quite make my goal of $6000 raised, but I did raise nearly $4700 for my campaign and another $560 for Deanna's campaign, so I came darn close! I went to a meeting a couple weeks ago and was told that there are 4500 walkers registered for the Philadelphia walk. Allowing for a 25% drop-out rate of people who don't raise the $2200 required to walk, if everyone else participating raised just the minimum, we would have $7,425,000 raised - WOW! Isn't the power of numbers staggering? So join me in spreading the good vibrations that we will soon HAVE A CURE!!! And be thinking of me on Friday morning as I start walking my sixty miles. Send me a lot of good happy thoughts to sustain me!

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Enabler Alert!!!


Check this out - a FREE online class at JessicaSprague.com. I've been admiring her site for awhile now and had in the back of my mind to take the "Up and Running with PhotoShop" course but wanted to wait until after the 3Day Walk (I just don't have time for anything until that is behind me) - then Jessica goes and announces this FREE class! If you read the write-up for it on her blog or website, it sounds really cool, and hey, who can argue with FREE??? Registration opens 10/20 and I'll be signing up. Care to join me?

Other than posting this quick alert, I've been off the Internet because Sarah is home for her October break. I've been enjoying spending some time with her and catching up on her life at college. She needed some "professional" clothes for presentations for her business classes, so we went out shopping today - managed to find a black blazer and pants and two button front long sleeve shirts for $70 total! (Kohls and Dress Barn). Score!

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Touching on the Taboo



Okay, so unless you are living under a rock, you can't have missed what's happening in our world right now. I've tried hard to avoid it - trying to keep the negativity out of my life - but it is everywhere I turn - on t.v., newspapers, on my yahoo page when I log onto the Internet. It's being discussed at work, at Curves, in my family room. Yes, it's true - our economy is in the toilet. And there is no clearer indicator for me than today's mail - I received my Vanguard statement and had to face the ugly reality of how much money my rollover 401K account has lost since 12/31/07. UGH! Trying to convince myself that the stock market is cyclical and the best thing I can do is "let it ride" is really difficult when the pundits are screaming that our economy is in the worst shape it has ever been since The Great Depression.
So what am I doing about it? Burying my head in the sand? Living in denial? NOPE! I am working harder at being informed about political issues and understanding what each candidate stands for than I have in any previous election year. As intelligent as I know I am, I have to admit that a lot of this goes over my head. I had to look up what the term "earmark" meant as it applies to federal spending. But I'm taking the time to become educated, to understand. And the more I learn, the more amazed I am at how truly "small" our world is. Everything is interconnected. The idea that economic woes here in the United States can affect the markets in Canada, Europe, and Asia is kind of mind-blowing. Sarah is taking a course this semester called "Global Business Perspectives" - I can just imagine the discourse that the daily headlines are sparking in that classroom.

Politically (here comes the taboo part) I'm not affiliated with either party and I can't say that I truly lean left or right. Perhaps odd given that I was raised in a largely democratic leaning household, but my Mom also taught me to think for myself. I look at each issue separately, not along "party" lines. There are some things that I believe government should stay out of entirely - like a woman's right to choose, in consultation with her own doctor, what happens with her own body. There are some things I think the government needs to get more involved in and serious about - like incentives for developing alternative CLEAN sources of energy, like protecting our planet, like making education affordable. But when it comes to the $700B bailout just passed by our government, I'm torn. Seems our country has gotten itself into a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" place. The government felt compelled to do SOMETHING to stop the bleeding, but we all know a band aid won't cure hemorrhaging. I have very little sympathy for homeowners who knowingly took out huge mortgages that they couldn't really afford just because some bank was willing to approve the loan. I have even less sympathy for the Wall Street banking institutions that saw fit to approve loans to people with horrendous credit history and no income to support the level of loans being taken out. I've spent way too much time living within my means and limiting what I do and what I have to feel sorry for those who want it all now and damn the consequences.

Why should the American taxpayers bail out those who choose to live beyond their means? Why should the American taxpayers foot the bill for greed and corruption on Wall Street? On the other hand, if we don't do something to get credit flowing again, will Sarah be able to get a college loan next year? Will my retirement savings that I have spent years and years building up dwindle to nothing? These are the kinds of questions I'm pondering as I look at our candidates that are up for election in November. Regardless of what your political leaning is, I urge you to become educated, to think carefully about your choices, and most of all - to VOTE. And if you haven't seen it yet, watch this video. Okay, off my soapbox. :)

Monday, October 6, 2008

Only 11 More Days!

Help me reach my goal for the Philadelphia Breast Cancer 3-Day!
With only eleven days to go before I walk in the 3Day, I'm starting to come to grips with the idea that my $6000 goal may be slightly beyond my reach. It was lofty and idealistic, but I had high hopes. I'm actually thrilled that all my friends, family, and people I don't even know have stepped up to help me raise just over $4500 and it is such a worthy cause! So.... if anyone has any last-minute ideas for raising some quick funds, I'm listening.

Thursday, October 2, 2008

What? Me Blogging?

Yes, me blogging. I've been wanting to start a blog for awhile, but every time I look at the blank screen in front of me, I feel stymied. All those creative people out there with all their beautiful, fresh, funky, and creative blogs - quite simply intimidate me! Okay, I know it can't be that hard, so I'm starting today with the real basics - no cute header, no links all over creation - just the bare bones that I can figure out how to do on my own! So if you read this, be nice. I'm trying.

What pushed me over the edge? Stacy Julian, my personal fave among scrapbooking celebs, posted a blog blitz yesterday. The idea - make this super cute teeny tiny album (literally 3" square) to carry around with you, documenting your life as it is RIGHT NOW. So I did it. I actually took photos, printed them out, made an itty bitty album, and filled it - all in one day! And I'm so freakin' proud of myself, both for overcoming my technology phobias and for actually doing it, that I'm dying to SHARE!!!




Stacy's idea is that you carry this little album around with you and glance through it every time you come across it. It can remind you of all the things you are grateful for, all the blessings in your every day life. And a year from now, you are to create a scrapbook page about your experience of having this little book with you. Stacy's blog is: http://stacysbigpicture.typepad.com/ - go check it out!