Random Friday

We have been eating healthier for a while now and quite often I find myself starving with no quick & healthy snack in sight.  I saw a post about this cool snack delivery service and decided to give it a shot.  I got my first order in and very impressed.  It comes with 4 different snacks complete with nutritional info.  After you've tried all the snacks, you go back to the website and rate them, or you can even say don't ever send me that one. My boys have decided that they love this every other week box in the mail so we sit and try everything together before going online to rate them!

If you would like to give it a try...head over to the GRAZE website and sign up.  It's $6 per box and an every other week auto-ship.  Your first and fifth boxes are free AND if you enter my friend code SIEWLE84B, I get $1 off my next box.

Wednesday pins

So I've been seeing a lot of layouts and cards with banners and twine! I couldn't figure out how to add the twine without stitching it on and at a previous crop, someone told me they used glue dots...one on each end of the twine but what about the middle? I had read about dipping the twine in Elmer's glue but that seemed too messy. So I decided to play around while I designed some new kits. I found a good in between method and thought I'd share. I used my Zig squeeze and roll glue pen...just apply a line of it, you can even write with it...and hold your twine in place until it dries. Doesn't take longer than 5 minutes. So far so good...a week later, the twine are still in place.

 Here I glued the twine on over the banners.  Banners are Coredinations Kraft with the edges sanded. 

This one has the banners over the twine with knotted ends.  I just pop dotted the banners.

Same thing here except the banners are layered stickers so I tucked the twine between the layers.

 

Writing with the glue pen was a little trickier but still worked great.  Love this new trick of mine!!!

Just Scrappin' Commuter Seats NOW OPEN!!!

Those of you that have been anxiously waiting for this, Jean and I are happy to announce that we are now accepting commuters for our May/June weekend! Commuter rate is $195, includes everything except the hotel room. 

We also still have spots for those who want to come and stay for the weekend, but we are about 2/3rds of the way full, so please send me your deposit to reserve your seat! 

 Hope you can join us!

Registration forms can be found HERE in the files tab 

or by emailing me at sluvs2skrap at yahoo dot com.

Weekend Wrap-up

Mom n Me weekends are always fun and eye-opening. Kids just have such a different view on crafting. I taught two sessions of my Kids Kards Class and had 11 kids in each class, ages varying from 8-14. They dived in without any hesitation...distress you say? OK! Use a souffle pen?  OK!  mask and ink? OK! Musical cards? YES Please!  What is musical cards...6 different cards and 11 kids meant I had to get creative with how I taught the class.  There wasn't enough for everyone to work on the same card at the same time.  So I set up stations, walked them through it at the beginning of class.  There was also a time limit...soooo...I put on some music, told them to work in pairs one station at a time and when the song ended, they moved to the next one.There was singing and bopping...so much fun.  I should do this with adults too ;)

 The other thing I noticed why how they just rolled with it...on this card, they had to cut out the bee with scissors and 2 girls told me they cut off the antennas by mistake.  And before I could say anything, they piped up to say, "It's not a big deal, we stuck it on and drew the antennas back on!"  Amazing and so creative!  Nothing threw them off...smudge? Just color over it with a darker color. Crooked?  I like it like that.  

Layout kits pt 2

Just in case you're wondering, yes Time2Scrap is a family business ...that is everyone gets involved.  The husband with his support and heavy lifting loading and unloading the car.  The boys aren't left out either, they load and unload and most importantly they help kit my layout kits.  Last week during the Nor'easter, they were tasked with kitting 4 kits.  The Q&A session that ensued...

Kid 1: Mom, do you make at least $3000 profits from these kits?  (I like how his brain works
Me: I don't know how much I actually profit, want to do the math?
Kid 1: It's a snow day, no thanks!

Kid 1: Mom, do all the papers have to face out?  What about the instructions and photo?
Me:  Yes.  Everything faces the same direction, make all the kits exactly alike? 
Kid 1: You mean I can't change things up? 
Me: That would be confusing and it helps when customers can see what they're buying and the price.
Kid 1: That's boring!

Kid 2: Mom, why is there always an extra sheet of patterned paper leftover?
Me: They come in packs of 25.
Kid 2: That's dumb! I agree but that's the way the world turns.

Anyone want to join us for another kit making session?  

Weekend Wrap-up

Another great weekend with the Cool Crops Crew...they sure know how to throw a crop!  The theme for the weekend was red and it was a sea of red in the crop room on Saturday.  I stayed up too late and woke up too early the whole weekend but it's always well worth it when there's so many people to visit with :)

  Teaching 3 classes and trying to get new layout kits out = less time for picture taking but trust me it was worth it.  Ladies, I hope you enjoyed the classes and layout kits, that bin is looking really sad and I'm on a mission to get it re-stocked.  Thank you all for your support and love...the picture below says it all, taken during the 20 minute sidewalk sale.  

THANK YOU!!! 
I'm also going to take a break from blogging this vacation week and spend some time with my boys!  

Random Friday

Today is a special day so I'm here to wish you a HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!  
And a post is not a complete post without a pic, here's one of the gift we put together for my youngest's classmates. 
ps. Snow day on V-day so we might just have to dress this gift up a little bit more...I'm thinking names on the rulers and a little bit of Wink of Stella on those hearts!

New kits in the store!!!

Working overtime here in my scrap cave...many events coming up, papers piling up in my to kit pile...it's nuts in here.  Good thing the weather is conducive.  You must be thinking I'm nuts, lol, well it's freezing out so what better reason to stay in with warm sweats, heater and music cranking and scrappy goodness?!?!!

I've got 4 new kits to debut in the store this weekend.  TWO are brand spanking new complete with home-made die-cuts by yours truly and TWO are leftover class kits.  If you didn't get an opportunity to take the class, you can get the kit complete with photo and instructions.  Also, if you want to get a group of friends together, we can sit down and work on them together!

All kits are $10 and comes with a photo of the completed layout plus written instructions.

Freezer Meals

There are tons of pins regarding freezer meals on Pinterest and they look, to me, like a brilliant idea.  Spend a few hours in the kitchen one day, stick the food in the freezer and when in a bind, thaw (sometimes you don't even need to thaw) and dump into the crockpot.  Voila...healthy warm meal on the table! I decided to give it a try some months back and loved the recipes.  I'd love to share which recipes I tried but I can't remember and can't find the pin :(  I have it printed out and can repeat but won't post until I can give credit.  

This time around, I poked around my pins, found a few recipes I thought my family would like, brought out a few from the last round that we loved and made some regular recipes into freezer meals.  In Saturday night, exhausted from a long day but with all the raw food waiting in the fridge, I put together 11 meals and 2 baggies of turkey meatballs!!!  It should hold us through til then end of my crazy crop schedule...I will still cook but these meals will come in handy on Sunday nights when I'm rolling in on Sunday afternoon and there's an evening hockey game.  Hubby or even the boys will be able to get a meal started in the morning.

If you would like to try making these meals, here is what I made, some recipes made 2 meals.  Some of these recipes are new to me so I'm not making any recommendations.  I will try to come back and update though.

1.  Maple Dijon Glazed Chicken
2. Teriyaki chicken - bite-sized boneless, skinless chicken thighs plus teriyaki sauce.  We love Soy Vey's Very Very Teriyaki.  Just thaw and pan fry (or dump in crock pot)...serve over white jasmine rice.
3. Morrocan Lamb Stew
4. Salsa Chicken - will add sour cream after cooking
5. Cilantro Lime Chicken
6. Healthy Mama BBQ Chicken
7. Turkey Meatballs

Have you tried freezer meals?  If so do share your meals and results.  

 

Upcoming Events

Four back to back events coming up starting this weekend.  Looking forward to it!  Prepping like a busy bat in scrap cave ;)  I will be teaching my 2 page Winter Wonderland class at all 4 events.  I will also have my Card Class kits available for sale.  Limited availability of the card kits...message me if you would like me to save you a kit. 

Feb 14 to 16 - Cool Crops in Andover, MA.

Feb 21 to 23 - Scrap-A-Way MOM'n'ME in Warwick, RI.

Feb 28 to Mar 2 - Ready Set Crop in Leominster, MA.

Mar 8 - A Crop to Remember in Souththington, CT.

Want to join Jean and I for our Just Scrappin' crop in May and/or September?  Registration forms can be found HERE in the files section and deposits are coming in daily.  Reserve your spot ASAP!

If you have been trying to get into a Cool Crops event, they have openings at their March Cromwell, CT event.  Head over HERE for more info.

Whirlwind Weekend

This weekend totally felt like a whirlwind weekend. I got a TON of stuff done and yet there is still so much to do. Trying to get ready for 2 back to back crops so I can enjoy winter break with my boys. 


Friday I designed a card class for a Mom n Me crop. The cards came out super cute and can be seen HERE. I spent a few hours Sunday afternoon while the boys were with friends playing basketball prepping for the class...I'd say it's 60% prepped. More to go today and my goal is to get it done! My favorite has to be the Super Hero card...waiting for the matching die to show up for the super hero before I can continue but everything else is going to be prepped and kitted to go by the end of today!!!

Going solo this weekend meant I also spent a lot of time driving back and forth between practices and games...for a total of 3 practices and 1 game and 2 religious ed classes. Good thing there was no hockey, they got the weekend off. 

We also squeezed out some time for fun...Friday night, I took the boys to Sky Zone for Jumpalooza with their friends. If you haven't been, I highly recommend it.  Lots of fun and a great energy burner for the kids. Two tips - One, buy your tickets online to ensure they get in and two, sit as far away from the DJ as possible. There weren't many seating choices and I was about 20ft. from the speakers...I think I get a Mother of the Year award for knitting 2 1/2 hours straight next to the speakers. I did have my earphones in for an audiobook but it was still loud.


In between all that, Saturday night, I put up 14...yes FOUR-TEEN freezer meals. It just had to get done, I had bought all the ingredients and I didn't want it to spoil. I'm so glad I did it and that it only took 3 hours. Now I have a freezer full of meals that just needs thawing and then dumped into a crockpot to cook. A few easy sides and dinner's on the table. The details will have to be another post on another day. 

What else? I started knitting a new hat and accomplished a few more rows on the baby blanket. We checked out 2 antique stores hunting for a specific something for my booth, had a playdate, watched some shows (the boys and I are watching a new series Almost Human together) and got some shopping and visiting in.  Busy indeed but fun and productive!  How was your weekend?

Crafting Cards

I was asked to teach a card class for an upcoming Mom n Me event.  The class will be for the "ME's"...2 classes of 12 with an age range of 8 to 14 years old girls and boys.  I thought about it long and hard because I wanted it to be do-able for them and still be nice looking cards.  There will be quite a bit of cutting and prep work but I think they came out fun and cute.

So here is my class description

Crafty Card Class - Join me Saturday afternoon for a fun, quick and easy card class.  We will use some fun products like washi tape and wink of stella markers to create SIX cards perfect for the kids (or kid-like adults) in your life. Please bring scissors and tape runner.  Everything else will be provided.

SIX cards...one is not in the picture, if you're counting.  It's a bonus card.  One that I had in my brain and just had to put together.  If you're one of the MOM's coming to the event and would like to make these cards too, feel free to message me and I'll put together a kit for you.  In fact, if you would like a kit, just let me know and I'll put one together for you. Your cost is $10 and can be mailed (shipping extra) or delivered to you at a crop.

Random Friday

I taught myself how to knit back in the fall of 2012...before our road trip to Florida.  I spent most of the ride knitting and haven't stopped since.  Currently, I am working on a baby blanket and it has been quite a challenge for this newbie knitter.  I forget to YO, forget to K2, forget to PSSO but thankfully this pattern has been pretty forgiving and the recipient won't notice.  Unfortunately, I am way behind schedule on it...the recipient arrived a month earlier than expected, I've been busy and am a slow knitter (I did mention I am a rookie knitter, right?).  Not that rookie I can't watch a show and knit, maybe that's why I forget YO's, K2's and PSSO's. 

I can also play a mean game of Battleship while I knit...I'm even slower then but a row here and there is better than no progress. 

The best thing about knitting unlike scrapbooking is that I can bring it with me when I'm stuck waiting for the boys at practice.  I'm sure you've been there...it's too far to drive all the way home or practice is too short to make it worth it.  Some times I run errands in the area, most times I bring my knitting.

Do you have other hobbies besides scrapbooking and card making? 

Thanks coach!

We are at the tail end of basketball season - meaning it's time for coach gifts.  The boys' coach's have been awesome, giving up their evenings and weekends to coach and even drive the kids to and from practice/games.  This year, I'll tuck in a gas card into these cards for each of them. 

Back to the cards.  These were super easy to put together.  I cut out the basketball player silhouette's on black cardstock using my cricut, sprayed a "blob" of color shine on the background, some droplets and a fine mist, stamped on a saying and matted on coordinating patterned paper.  Stamp is a Stampin' Up stamp.  Easy peasy! 

Got Washi?

It is snowing hard out there as I sit here and type this post.  *squirrel - what other adjectives are there for falling snow? I can't say snowing cats and dogs nor pouring...gonna have to look this up. And *squirrel* is something the boys and I use when someone loses focus or goes off topic.*  Back to Washi... how much washi can a girl have? Someone (you know who you are) asked that question on fb just last week. My answer - There's never too much washi tape. What is Washi tape you ask? It's basically patterned masking tape. Great for taping notes or cards to the wall/fridge since it peels off easily and is pretty. It's easily used on cards, layouts AND other home projects.  There are tons of ideas on Pinterest and in fact, I just started a Washi pinterest board.

One of the easiest pins I chose to try was to use Washi tape to decorate and easily identify charging cords and adapters.  It was super easy - just roll some tape around the object and cut.  Pretty and now the boys won't be stealing mine ;)

February Newsletter & a GIVEAWAY

This baby took a lot longer than expected but it was my first one using mailchimp (an online email marketing website).  I have to say I love how the end product looks - very polished with photos.  I hope you like it too.  If you didn't get a copy in your inbox and would like to sign up...

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I also have a GIVEAWAY going on today...how would you like a chance to win a 12 pack of Wink of Stella markers?  To enter, LIKE my Facebook page AND comment on this post or one that you find interesting. Giveaway ends at midnight tonight and winner will be announced on my FB page tomorrow.  One entry per person.  If you've already liked my facebook page, you can skip that step and make sure to leave a comment on my blog!

Weekend Wrap-up

Back with the Scrap-A-Way Retreats gang this past weekend in Warwick, RI.  Smaller class this time around but no less awesome!  Love teaching classes and sharing techniques/tips and my designs.

It was casino night and while the girls were hard at work, the three of us vendors stole away for a little fun...that's just how we roll!!! 

Next event with Scrap-A-Way is their Mom n Me crop Feb 21-23 also in Warwick, RI...looking forward to it and I better start working on my classes for the Mom's and Me's.