What's Cooking?

Bringing back my recipe sharing on the blog. Last week, I tried out a new crockpot recipe...Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas...and I followed her instructions to the T and it came out amazing! We ate it for two meals (with no pictures to show for it) and used it for burrito bowls ala Chipotle, tacos, quesadillas and actual burritos. The boys LOVED it and are asking for more. I froze half of the meat and it was just as tasty the second time around.

Here's a picture of my lunch...leftovers = burrito bowl, lettuce on the side, homemade guacamole, salsa from Sam's club, rice from a box mix and received beans. Buen provecho!

Weekend Wrap-up

It was another fun-filled weekend...both work and play, mostly play with some house work thrown in the mix. We spent Friday evening together as a family at Mohegan Sun watching a comedy gala, tickets we had bought Jori for his birthday.

We spent Saturday working around the house and then at a friend's house for a get-together. I offered to teach my canvas class and my friends all jumped at the chance. Check out some of the backgrounds of these canvases!

Sunday was a day for sports starting with a fall baseball double header and ending with a hockey game with a nap in between. It's the first game I've been able to make and I was super excited to catch this shot. This is why I take photos...to freeze these moments forever and ever. Jori had just hit a triple and dad was coaching 3rd base.

Now on to Monday!

Sneaky Sunday - Gotta Catch Them All Kit

The Pokemon Go game was the game of summer 2016. Did you or your kids play it? Do you have photos to scrapbook and can't find the right papers and embellishments? Check out my custom layout kit...it's nice and bright and best of all has large open spaces for lots and lots of photos. Order one today and I'll have it ready for you at a crop or get it shipped straight to your door.

Weekend Wrap-up

I had a wonderful long weekend, I sure you did too. The boys had a series of activities that kept us running back and forth all weekend...and despite it all, we still managed to find some time to hang out in the house. Most memorable was when we gathered in the kitchen Monday morning to make breakfast together and I impressed them with my one-handed egg cracking skills ;)

Sports are a big part of our life currently...my boys are involved in football, cross country, ice hockey and baseball. It was a baseball bye weekend and the freshman football team doesn't play on weekends but we made it to a JV game. Darin wanted to watch his friends play and we both went out with cameras to practice. This was followed by Jori's Cross Country Invitational Meet and an ice hockey game Sunday night. Yes I usually have my camera with me, Yes I take pictures of all the action and Yes I do share these pics with the kids.

 

My camera got quite the workout this weekend with all the sports photos and THREE senior photo shoots. It's always fun to get out there with these kids...many I have known for since they were little...and I feel so privileged to be asked to document them as they get ready to fly the nest. 

 

It's crisp out there but the sun feels so good! Have a wonderful week!!!

Sneaky Sunday - School Time

The kids are back in school...do you have a stack of back to school photos to scrap? This layout kit using a combination of Jillibean Soup and Doodlebug fits 7 photos! Order one today and I'll have it for you at a crop or get it shipped straight to your door.

Ready for Halloween?

It is October and only a few more weeks before Halloween. Now is the time to stock up on Halloween products so you can get those photos and memories into your scrapbooks ASAP. This year, there is an abundant of Halloween lines and I am spotlighting them in this post. We'll start with my favorite line this season, Haunted by Carta Bella...vintage-y yet nice and bright.

 Echo Park has a cute-sy line and I love the colors even though my boys are a little too old for it.

Here's another cute line...the science geek in my is absolutely in love with the mad scientist and Erlenmeyer flasks but once again, it's too cute for my teen boys :(

This new line by Photo Play called Bootiful designed by Julie Nutting is just too cute. She's incorporated her doll stamps on her papers and would be perfect for your photos or to highlight some dolls. In case you're wondering, Julie Nutting's Halloween dolls are Witchy Poo, Skelly, Bootiful and Lil Witch.

Reminisce has been knocking it out of the park with their new lines and this Eerie Night kit is the absolute bomb!

 Authentique has this cute vintage card kit, Mysterious, with their signature orange, black and off-white color palette.

 Bo Bunny too has their own line called Wonderfully Wicked. A little busy for me but love the colors.

I have most of these in stock but as always, if there is one you have your eye on, let me know and I'll order it for you or set one aside.

Bazzill Bulk Buy

It's time for another Bazzill Bulk Buy, the perfect opportunity to stock up on Bazzill cardstock at a reduced price.  I am offering TWO different buys this month, Bazzill BLING and Bazzill SMOOTHIES. Bazzill Bling is an 80lb cardstock featuring canvas texture and a touch of shimmer. Bazzill Smoothies is also an 80lb cardstock featuring smooth touch, no texture, and perfect for stamping. Both have solid core, and are acid & lignin free.

New to my cardstock bulk buy?  Here's the scoop...

• You will receive 60 sheets of cardstock, 5 sheets each of 12 different colors (see images below for colors). Color choice may change due to availability.
• Price includes tax and shipping to me.
• Price is for local hand delivery only - It does NOT include shipping to you. We can meet up or deliver at an event (check my schedule here).  Cardstock will be available for delivery at Cool Crops Warwick, Ready Set Crop and Purity Springs Mom n Me.
• Mailing from me to you will be actual USPS cost of $13.00 for a priority flat rate box. I can fit 2 orders in a box.
• Order Deadline is noon, Tuesday 10/11/16. 
• Payments by paypal (please select friends and family) or checks only.

Bazzill Smoothies $23.
Bazzill Bling $31.
Email me (sluvs2skrap at yahoo dot com) to purchase. lease include # of buys, which buy (smoothies, bling or both) you would like, payment method and delivery location.

Bazzill Smoothies

Bazzill Bling - love the names!

Weekend Wrap-up

So summer came and went, and the crop season started with a bang. I had three events in a row and somehow here we are in October. I'll do a quick recap of the 3 events and then get back to the regular schedule here.

First event of the season was my own crop...Just Scrappin' in Westboro, MA. I debuted my You Go Girl! canvas class at this event and loved how it the turned out, every single canvas was an original masterpiece. Our sold out event had a few bumps along the way but nothing we couldn't handle or roll with. If you would like more information on Jean and my crops, check it out HERE. Our next event will be held Feb 16 - 19 in Milford, MA.

Next up was Cool Crops Portland and I had had a little too much fun shopping over the summer. The say my car was packed was an understatement. I think a trailer will have to go on my shopping list for 2017! It was another great Cool Crops weekend, they're always great.

And just this past weekend, I had the pleasure of joining the ladies at Purity Springs Resort for their second Fall weekend. It was such a pleasure to meet (and re-connect) with the wonderful ladies that scrap there. I loved the space, the resort, the staff and of course the scrappers. Best part is, their crops start on Tuesday and go through Sunday.

The store just keeps growing!

Time to get off the computer and take this sad puppy for a walk! Be back soon!!!

Bazzill Bulk Buy

It's time for another Bazzill Bulk Buy, the perfect opportunity to stock up on Bazzill cardstock at a reduced price.  I am offering TWO different buys this month, regular bazzill and swiss dots bazzill (new colors). New to my cardstock bulk buy?  Here's the scoop...

• You will receive 60 sheets of cardstock, 5 sheets each of 12 different colors.
• Price includes tax and shipping to me.
• Price is for local hand delivery only - It does NOT include shipping to you. We can meet up or deliver at an event (check my schedule here).  Cardstock will be available for delivery at Just Scrappin' Westboro and all crops after.
• Mailing from me to you will be actual USPS cost of $13.00 for a priority flat rate box. I can fit 2 orders in a box.
• Order Deadline is noon, Monday 8/22/16. 
• Payments by paypal (friends and family) or checks only.

The cost of this month's buy is $26.50. Email me (sluvs2skrap at yahoo dot com) to purchase, please include # of buys, which buy (Regular or Swiss Dots) you would like, payment method and delivery location.

Regular Bazzill

Swiss Dots Bazzill

Sneaky Sunday

You Go Girl Canvas classMixed media art is a fresh new take on paper crafting that I'm sure you'll love! Learn how to incorporate paper products into a crafty canvas - I will show you how to paint, stamp, and play with different medias to make a beautiful piece of art. All of the supplies needed to complete this canvas are included in the cost of this class, but participants are welcome to bring additional embellishments. Cost is $20 and class will run about 1 1/2 hours. These make great gifts too...there will be other designs/colors/quotes available in class.

Sneaky Sunday

A new class for the fall season...Adventure 2-page Layout class. Life is an adventure and this layout is perfect for showcasing those moments. We will cut, ink and punch our way through Jillibean's amazing Mushroom Medley line. Please bring dark brown ink, scissors, 12" trimmer, adhesive and foam dots. Cost is $12 and class will run about an hour.

Vacation mode

Baseball is almost over and it's almost time for a vacation trip. With that in mind, I am highlighting some of the newer lines currently available. Kaisercraft consistently produces lines that hit it out of the ballpark for me. I am fascinated by this classic vintage line called Just Landed.

Carta Bella also has a vintage-y line but is a little too busy for me.

Reminisce has several lines that perfect for those Florida trips. Their Wizard 101 is perfect for Harry Potter World and their Worlds of Adventure, just right for Universal Studios. There are a few more but they didn't interest me as much.

Echo Park has Magical Adventure...the newest Disney but not Disney line out. I have them stocked and am planning on making a multi-page layout kit with it. Queen & Co. has a line out as well as Simple Stories' Say Cheese lines.

If you're a Project Lifer - I love Becky Higgins' Explore Edition. Perfect for your summer adventures.

Bella Blvd. has a beautiful and colorful collection, Let's Go.

Last but not least, Paper House has 3 travel lines. Specifically geared toward Italy, France and England. If your travels led to Europe, these are a must have!

Share a Layout or Two

This time we have same photos, same papers, same title design and slightly different stickers. Papers are an older line from Creative Imaginations that I've been saving for their Lego creations as well as the stickers. I made the title...double matting them...on the silhouette. Can you tell I'm completely enamored by my Cameo?

Share A Layout or Two

Project Life is revolutionizing the scrapbook industry and as much as I want to convert to it, I still love the 12x12 pages. However it doesn't mean I can't use it as a basic template for my layouts. At our last crop, I challenged the girls to make a layout following a project life template and came up with this for myself. The layout came together quickly and easily.

Next, I gave them a sketch using the same concept but without the actual page protectors. The girls agreed it made for faster scrapping but then sketches always do. This is the sketch we used, designed by Scrapbook Generations, and below it is my interpretation of the sketch.

Share A Layout

Similar layouts again...one for each boy...same layout different photos. The hearts were cut using a free cut file from Scrapbook & Cards Today and I designed the title myself on the Silhouette Cameo.

Weekend Wrap-up

It was a gray and damp weekend but we made the most of it. We spent Saturday morning at the ball field for a double header and then came home to continue working on the shed. This time it was just Jorge and I out in the drizzle working on the interior stuff and getting the door in. We got the door in and then realized we needed the hammer and instructions so I went in through the window...good thing I fit...and Diego was super upset I was in there without him. He actually tried jumping in through the window!!!

Sunday's double header was canceled so we packed the teens up and drove into Boston. We introduced our niece to Dim Sum in Chinatown, a little big city shopping and then walked down to Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market before heading home for a 5pm baseball practice, all stars baseball starts up next weekend therefore the daily practices.

Share a Layout or Two

As I've mentioned before I make the same layout for each of my boys since they have their own albums. I may change up the photos a little but mostly keep the layouts the same. For these layouts, it looks like I printed the photos at different times, one layout has 4x6's and the other 3x4's. I just switched things around a little and kept the same title and papers.

Paper is from an older DCWV paper pad. I traced the ringmaster, typed the title out and welded everything together using my Silhouette Cameo for the title.

Weekend Wrap-up

We started our long weekend by taking down our old shed on Friday. It was falling apart and leaking...plus a tree had fallen on it way back in the ice storm flattening the roof.

Saturday we got up early and started working on building the new shed. We bought a kit from Lowe's and it took the entire morning to get the base leveled. Inspector Diego can be seen checking things out and making sure there was no slacking.

By the end of the day, we had a floor, 4 walls and a roof. The roof was tricky as both Jorge and I are short but armed with a step stool, a ladder and the tall boys, we go it up there and somewhat flush and squared. We'll have to move things around before we put the shingles down but we got the bulk of the work done. Woo Hoo!!!

We got another early start on Sunday for our drive to Rochester, NY for the annual La Familia Softball game. I love that everyone is encouraged to play and there is some serious smack talking going on. The best was watching the 3 year old running around the bases after a "home run" and him throwing down his glove every time the ball didn't go his way LOL!

Can't leave out the fabulous fireworks show by the canal on the 4th before heading home today. We brought a cousin back with us and are officially a party of 5 with a little more estrogen in the house for the next 2 weeks! Don't worry if you don't hear from me...I'll be busy entertaining 3 teenagers :)