Our Trip to Vermont

We promised Cody MONTHS ago that we would take him to Echo, The Leahy Center for Lake Champlain. It is a lake aquarium/interactive museum. The traveling exhibit for the summer is dinosaurs, so that was a must see for my 11 year old!

It was a beautiful day for a trip to Vermont. We live about an hour and a half from Burlington Vt, and much of the travel is secondary roads before we make it to the interstate for the last leg of the trip. Lake Champlain was just glittering yesterday, the sun made it beautiful. The cows grazing in the fields, all the wildflowers and roadside vegetable stands-everything was wonderful!

Cody loved the Echo center. They had all kinds of wildlife from our area--fish, turtles, snakes, lizards-all set up in really neat habitats. They had all kinds of interactive displays for kids to take part in.

The traveling dinosaur display had an actual dinosaur from Jurassic Park--the selling point in Cody's mind. The skeleton next to the JP Velociraptor is the actual size of the dinosaur...they made then considerable bigger for the movie!! They had some really cool displays...of course they were all in the dark, and under glass--a picture taker's nightmare!! I managed to get a few good shots, though!

The building is on Burlington's waterfront, with 2nd story balcony's facing the water. The sun beating down was wonderful. We watched dozens of sailboats on the water, along with the tour boat "The Spirit of Ethan Allen" and the Lake Champlain Ferry.

After the museum, we had some lunch, and I visited the LSS--only to find it closing it's doors with everything 30% off and half empty shelves...what a bummer!! That was the closest LSS--and now it is closing.

All in all, it was a wonderful day. The days we get to do something like this together are few and far between, and yesterday taught us that we need to take more time to do these things....life is short and there are no do-overs....

Get out and do things--it doesnt' have to cost a lot of money--I realized yesterday that I take for granted what a beautiful area I live in. The best places to visit are close to your home!!

Heritage...

After the tiny rant I had yesterday, if I didn't scare you away, I thought I would share a few heritage pages with you. Nancy has me so inspired! These were done long ago, and are not nearly as well put together as hers, but they are mine, and I love them just the same! I also love the old photographs because it takes me back to a time when things were simpler. Not that they thought they were, my Grandparents thought we were going to hell in a handbasket 30 years ago!! These are my Dad's Parents, Lyle and Bertha Brooks. Pa has been gone for 16 years, Grandma for 22. Seems like yesterday!

This is Lyle and Bertha with my Dad and his brother and sisters when they were kids. I love this photo, my aunts have Nellie Olsen curls! I am so glad when I look at these photos that we have them. So many people don't have access to old family photos, or just don't care. This is another one I did YEARS ago. I have a really hard time with heritage pages, so I try to keep them simple.
This last one is of my Grandfather, Lyle, on the farm. I love the candid-ness of it. I LOVE to remember him this way, even though this was far before I knew him. The only way I knew him was in a house in town after we took over the farm, or in a nursing home. There were no bib overalls, just regular clothes, a baseball game, and a candy dish!

Have a great Wednesday, all! --Kerilou

A Major Vent--

I don't usually post more than once a day, but I really feel like I have to get this out, and it may actually be preventing an anxiety attack!!
Let me begin by saying that I am not looking for any sympathy, and I know we all go through stuff like this. But what the heck is wrong with our customer service industry?? I feel like I am surrounded by idiots. Do these people even care about anything but their paychecks? I am so sick of my family suffering from everyone else's irresponsibility.
Our post office managed to lose three of our bills that were mailed out a month ago. Along with many other people's bills that same day. We had to stop payment on three checks so they could be re issued. Now they don't want take any responsiblitly for their actions. They think that we should not have stopped payment, just waited to see what happened. Meanwhile, along with the 90 dollars of stop payment fees, we incurred late fees on our 2 credit cards, and our auto insurance was cancelled......we did not have an extra 500 dollars to wait and see what happened to the original checks! I think that they should re imburse us for the fees we had to pay! With Peter laid off, that 90 bucks would make a big difference!
We were notified a while ago that our health insurance lapsed, and no one ever told us. Then after days of getting the run around, "OOPS!!, WE MADE A MISTAKE...YOU STILL HAVE INSURANCE!! But is will lapse by mid August if you don't pay x amount.
The kind people at our health insurance company denied our ER claims twice before deciding Peter's infection was in fact a life threatening illness and that they would cover it. He only had to go in every 6 hours for 4 straight days for IV antibiotics!!
I am supposed to have elective surgery in two weeks, and our insurance is going to lapse? Well, that is okay, cause apparently as of June 30th, we had no more rx insurance. Even though I just got a rx filled a week ago....another mistake? Who knows?? NO ONE KNOWS ANYTHING ANYMORE, EXCEPT WHEN CLOCK OUT TIME IS, AND WHEN PAY DAY IS. I thank Mary Beth, ext. 197 of Empire state carpenters--the only one who has a kind bone in her body and seems to care about her job and the people she helps...
I guess my point is--why is nothing easy anymore? All I have done for months is fight on the phone with people who point fingers at each other. I am sick to death of the whole stupid deal.
I try to remember how fortunate we are to have our health and a roof over our heads, but I am human, and that does not always work. Please tell me I am not the only one constantly fighting!! The more I think about it, the more I think the Amish have the right idea...--Keri

POD ATC...

In honor of the Anniversary sale that Michele is holding over at Purple Onion Designs,

here is an ATC that I made for a mingle I took part in. The theme was Purple Onion Designs stamps. I used glossy white cardstock, and brayered it with a blue spectrum pad. Then I stamped the POD Blossoms stamps with Jet Black Staz On ink. Mounted it on black cardstock, and stamped the POD Enjoy sentiment on the side! I love how it turned out, the blue looks so cool! --Keri

Toot!!

I am so excited to share some great news! I was approached by Anam a few months ago to do a tattoo themed scrapbook layout for a magazine article she was writing. The magazine is called Skin & Ink-- http://www.skinandink.com/ . We got word the other day that the magazine is publishing the article, and the layouts! The layout I did (which has to be under wraps until the magazine is out) uses the tattoo I have of Cody's baby footprints. Here are the two blogs for Anam, check them out!!

http://www.anamstubbington.typepad.com/

http://www.inkedscrapbookers.com/

The magazine is the March 2008 issue, released in December of 2007.

Have a great Monday, --Keri

Jailbirds and more....

Consider these your cute photo fix of the day!! Cody and Brodie in "jail" together...at least Brodie thinks so!
Here is one I just found from a few weeks ago of my Dad with Brodie. She is definitely a man's dog. So much for her being mine! My Dad really likes her, as if you couldn't tell!!

Harley is not a big one for the camera. The flash reminds her of lightening, and she is terrified of storms. She paces the house, panting and drooling during storms, and when I get the camera out. It is so hard to get photos of her because of this. I did manage to get this one, though. They are few and far between, but I wanted her to get some attention, too!!

I just took this one of Brodie the other day. She still has alot of white in her coat, and it reflects the flash so she looks really bright in all the photos! She is finally big enough to jump up on the old porch couch that Harley sleeps on, and she thinks she is pretty cool now!Have a great weekend, everyone! --Keri

Bridal Shower Invites...

Peter has a cousin who is getting married this fall. Her mom asked me to make her bridal shower invitations, so she could have something fall themed. They had to have brown and burnt orange colors, and they were going to need quite a few, so we wanted to make sure that they weren't "lumpy" so they wouldn't charge extra at the PO. After making some samples and tweeking here and there, this is what we came up with!

I used SU!'s Fall Whimsey stamp set, SU! cardstock and ink in Chocolate Chip, and Really Rust, and Very Vanilly cardstock. I ended up making 70 invitations, complete with a printed piece that was adhered to the inside of the invite with all the pertinent information on it. It is hard to see, but there are leaves and acorns stamped on the brown cardstock background, as well as the rust colored strip. This was my first job making invitations for someone where I was actually hired. It was nice! Here is the finished product:

--Keri

Baby Gift

Peter's cousin is going to be a daddy! I unfortunately missed the baby shower, but wanted to make the new parents something for their baby's room. Their theme was Alphabet Soup, from Babies 'r Us, so I tried to pull colors from the pictures on the website to match my frame. I found a 6 window hinged frame, and spray painted it pure white. Since the theme was alphabets, I used my SU! Tall Tales Alpha and stamped letters on cardstock for each of the six windows in the frame. I mounted them on coordinating cardstock, and gingham patterned paper, which also matched the theme. I think it turned out so cute, and can be displayed on a stand or shelf in baby's room! Congrats to Brad and Erica! --Keri

Altered Notebooks, v. 3

I made a few more altered notebooks/journals for some friends, and I thought I would share them here! Michele got hers a few days ago. I thought purple was the obvious choice given she owns Purple Onion Designs! She is such a sweet and generous friend. I used Doodlebug patterned cardstock and Doodlebug Bazzill for her notebook. Added some POD stamps, and a chipboard monogram that I made myself! I used the SU! Tab Punch and made up some dividers, too. Hugs to you, Michele!!

Next was Lisa Renea. Like Michele's, I had this idea in my head for a while! I *love* this patterned paper, Cosmo Cricket's Wanted line. It is way old news, but I just love the colors and patterns of this paper! I use SU! Chocolate Chip, Cool Caribbean, and Cranberry Crisp cardstock, and the SU! Tab punch to make dividers. On the front, the chipboard sticker says "So many cowboys, so little rope!" Too cute! Of course I distressed everything with vintage photo in, and added a bow for good measure! Love ya, LR!

I also made up a few long narrow notebooks as grocery listers. I did not add dividers or tabs, just lined the covers inside and out, and stamped the word "groceries" in black ink with SU! Tall Tales alpha. The patterned paper is DCWV stack paper, which is great to use on these notebooks, cause many of the patterns coordinate!
Have a great Tuesday, everyone! --Kerilou

A Few ATC's

Well, I am finally feeling creative again, and I had a LOT of work to catch up on! Since I had few ATC's (Altered Trading Cards) to do, that is where I started. They are tiny, fairly quick, and anything goes! Here are a few that I completed:

This one was for a mingle for an online group I belong to...the theme was ribbon--I had the hardest time thinking about what to do! I decided when I found this vintage photo online with all the HUGE bows in their hair, that this is what our group would have looked like way back when. So I did not use any ribbon on my ribbon ATC mingle! Stamp is Purple Onion Designs.

My second one was GOING to be for the ribbon themed mingle, til I got done and realized I used fibers instead of ribbon for the patriotic colors. It is completely different that what I usually do, but fits the times we are going through quite well! All stamps are Purple Onion Designs.
The third one is using Stampin' Up!'s Blossoms Abound stamp set (one of my favorites!!) as well as SU!'s retired Sage Advice stamp set. I used the retired color Cranberry Crisp, and current Always Artichoke. Background paper is a scrap!

Happy Tuesday in flooded Northern NY! --Keri

New Buzz and Bloom Projects Up!

My three June projects are up on the Buzz and Bloom blog! http://buzzandbloom.typepad.com/buzzandbloom/ Buzz and Bloom is located in Australia. They are a wholesale company, so if you see any products you like, please urge your local scrapbook store or local rubber stamp store to contact Helene! Have a great Sunday, everyone! --Keri

A Bit of a Catch Up!!

Thought I would catch up this morning--a bit of a hodge podge of stuff I wanted to share--First off, we had a great Father's Day! Nothing to major, just a nice, quiet, laid back day. Here's a shot of Peter and Cody, and one of me and my Daddy on Father's Day.
Now-As I had stated on Saturday-we went yard sale hunting. I got the best item! I am still excited about it. I picked up this for my scrapbook room--I think people will enjoy shopping for cards up there now! It is nearly 6 feet tall, rotates, and has 5 sides!!

This is a sign I made for a bridal shower gift last week. Peter's cousin is gettin' hitched, and they are HUGE horse people. I love how this turned out!Have a great day!--Keri

A couple random thoughts....

We are going yard sale hunting today, so I will leave it at this:

1. When did I go from the person who owes my parents money, to the parent that is owed money by my kid???

2. If I absolutely *LOVE* the new Brad Paisley song "Ticks," exactly HOW redneck does that make me?

3. Some people need to think before they talk!
Happy Saturday, everyone! --Keri

More altered notebooks

Well, yesterday was the last day of school! Usually it isn't for another week and a half, but with Cody now in the high school building, and the older kids having state exams, he lucked out! He (at the last minute) wanted to give a few of his teachers a little "something" and I happened to have just the idea. I went to Michael's and bought some more of the Mary Engelbreit journals from the dollar spot, and got started! This time, I used patterned paper from the Stack from Joann's. I think it was a Spring Stack, but I can't be sure as I dismantled them long ago. I wanted them to be very simple and general, but also easy for me to pump out 3 in no time at all! They turned out very nice, with hardly a mishap. I used the SU! Stamp set Reason to Smile, and whatever cardstock I could find that coordinated with the patterned paper. I took one photo of the inside so you could see how I lined the inside cover, and stamped a border along the divider. Cody brought his presents to school, and he said his teachers really liked them. One even took the time to write a little thank you note! He said another of them noticed it was hand stamped....he was quite pleased. As a little sidenote** I attempted the rock and roll technique with the butterfly stamp. I don 't know if it looks right, but it does look cool!

Summer Makeover

Yesterday was the day! A year ago, Cody decided to grow his hair out. You know, the style of many boys these days...they look like Almanzo Wilder or Albert Ingalls from Little Hous on the Prairie...I told him as long as he kept it clean and neat, that he could do what he wanted. I did make him get it trimmed once, and he was not happy with it, so I promised him I would butt out, and he didn't have to get his hair cut ever again, unless it was his idea. WELL, with summer finally arriving here in the Arctic Circle, the heat and the black flies quickly made him change his mind, and want a haircut! Luckily, my best friend owns her own shop, and cuts our hair, so, after 45 grueling minutes of snipping, trimming and clipping, this is what the finished product looks like!

Live, Laugh, Love

Here is a little something I did for Buzz and Bloom a couple of months ago. I am on their design team, and they have just introduced some fabulous new designs in chipboard. They also have wonderful unmounted rubber stamps, and beautiful acrylic pieces. Go here to see more! www.buzzandbloom.com.au

Our Weekend...

Good Monday morning! I can't believe the weekend is gone already, and these next few weeks are going to be so busy, I don't even want to think about it! Then all the sudden, after the 22nd, everything will be done. School, my daycare until September, and Cody will start swimming lessons for 4 weeks. I am ready for a break, I must admit! Maybe more time to create? There hasn't been much of that lately!

This weekend was quite uneventful! I ran errands on Saturday morning, and worked outside in the afternoon. I got my zinnia, cosmos and bachelor button seeds planted, as well as my gladiola and peacock orchid bulbs. The only thing I have left to plant is my sunflower seeds in the big bed Peter made for me. It is a good feeling to know I got that much done! We also spent some time outside on the yard with Brodie, and I got completely riddled with mosquito bites! My skin is crawling!! Peter took Cody fishing to that special spot, and apparently, last week was not a fluke! They pulled out a 16 inch trout! I guess I need to figure out how to cook these fish, huh? So here are a few pictures I took over the weekend of Cody, Brodie, and the fish. Sounds like the title of a kids book..Hmmmm.....Have a great day, everyone, and God Bless You! Two important things happen today...1) UPS man brings me a big old SU! box, and 2) Cody is getting his hair cut!! So be prepared for a before and after tomorrow morning! --Keri

Father's Day Bottle

This is a little something I cooked up for a Stamp Camp my cousin did when she was here over Memorial Day weekend. I had the bottles, and she didn't, and she needed an example made, so this is what I came up with. These are the Frap bottles that are Starbucks's brand. I think I am going to fill it with chocolate covered raisins for my father-in-law for Father's Day.
I removed the labels after letting the bottles soak in water for a while, then scrubbed off the excess label glue with an SOS pad. I also spraypainted the lid to cover up the lettering.
I used SU! products for this bottle:
Stamp Sets:
Warm Words
Lovely as a Tree
Cardstock:
Very Vanilla
Chocolate Chip
Mellow Moss
Always Artichoke
Inks:
Chocolate Chip, Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke.
Tools: Paper crimper, small and regular tag punches, 1/8 whole punch, ribbon of your choice, circle punches for top of lid, and Mono Multi Liquid Glue.
* I didn't get a pic of the lid top, but we layered two sizes of circles with leaves stamped on the smaller one, and glued them on the lid. Really made a nice finishing touch.

Walk This Way, Baby!

My cousin is having a baby! Like ANY DAY having a baby. We attended her baby shower a couple of weekends ago, and this is what I gave her. She does not know if the baby is a boy or a girl, and the theme she chose was farm animals. I saw some pictures she emailed me of the nursery, and she had painted all the baseboards a beautiful celery green color. This is the card I made for her, using SU!'s Walk This Way stamp set. I used SU! Certainly Celery Cardstock, and Barely Banana Cardstock, along with Doodlebug Red, and a yellow striped patterned paper that I think came out of a DCWV stack. The gingham ribbon came from Michael's. I colored the images using Prismacolor colored pencils and Windsor and Newton Sansador. I made this card a top opening card with notches punched for the ribbon to sit in. I also distressed the edges of the card with my cutter kit from SU!.

For the actual gift, I got 4 small unfinished wood frames at Michael's, and painted them the same celery color as the cardstock and baseboards, using acrylic paint. After the paint was dry, I sanded down the frames for a shabby look. I stamped images on heavy white cardstock, and colored them in using the same technique that I used in the card, then added them to the frames. They were so easy to make, cost effective, and turned out adorable to boot! Using these frames, you could paint them any color, and put any kind of stamped image in them. I may do some Tractor Time ones for my kitchen! You could do any number to a set, too, depending on what stamps you use. Next comes the presentation. I didn't want to use any old dollar tree gift bag, I wanted it to be special. I had found these really cool popcorn tins...they were metal with a lid that had a clear window. I think they originally were from Target. I tried to cover the tin with paper, but that proved to be difficult, cause the tin itself was tapered. I decided to paint it with acrylic paint, and two coats did the trick. The graphics on the tin were not visible at all! After the paint was dry, I coated it with a coat of acrylic sealer. I then lined the edges with red gingham ribbon. I colored more of the farm animal images and mounted them on the yellow striped paper and red cardstock, and stuck them to the tin using red lined tacky tape. I stuck the frames inside the bucket along with some shredded SU! packing paper and tied it up with a bow. It turned out really cute, and she really liked it! Couldn't ask for more than that!! Have a beautiful day!--Keri

Gone Fishin'

I had a little Mommy time yesterday! Well, it included chasing a puppy, but beggars can't be choosers, right? Peter took Cody fishing in the river behind the house, and they found a "spot." Peter even went so far as to tell Cody to never tell where it is...They were so funny! The fish they caught were unbelievable! I was impressed. I really enjoy having a river behind the house. The view is spectacular, but to think they there were pulling out trout that looked like this? We do live in a wonderful area! Here are a few shots. Have a great Monday, everyone! --Keri

Altered Spiral Notebooks

A couple of months ago, I posted an altered notebook that a friend had made me for my birthday. I loved it! I keep it by my computer, and have designated the sections for certain things. Websites, wishlists, To-do's, etc. Well, I finally got a spiral notebook punch of my own, and decided to take a stab at altering one of these notebooks. I went to Michael's and got an assortment of spiral bound notebooks in different shapes and sizes. I found them in the dollar bins where you find the pocket calendars and coloring books and such. The price is right! I am finding that I like the Mary Engelbreit 5x7 notebooks the best. The punched holes line up perfectly, and the fit is not too tight. The only thing is, these notebooks have patterns on them, so when you cover them with paper, the pattern shows through on the edges. I tried to sand the edges down, but the printed pattern is pretty stubborn, so I opted to paint the edges with acrylic paint that coordinated with the patterned paper I was going to use. Sometimes I do the painting before adding the paper, sometimes after, for a distressed look. It is all personal preference. Out of the three I am showing you today, one I did not paint because the pattern matched the paper I was using, the other two I painted AFTER I added the paper, to get a distressed look. Here goes:

This one is the one I did not paint. The notebook was pale blue and white, and it matched the patterned paper (vintage fruit labels) that I had chosen. You start out by cutting your patterned paper the same size as the cover of your notebook. Then you take the spiral notebook punch, and punch it along the side that will be on the spine of the notebook. The punch has a small notch that aligns the holes so that they are automatically at equal intervals. Then you just place the paper onto the spiral wire, and it should lay flat over the cover. Once you know that it is a proper fit, you can adhere it. I use Mono Multi Liquid Glue. I have experimented with several different adhesives, an this is the one that I find works the best. I also lightly sanded the covers of the notebook to get a better grip with the glue. I just applyed the glue to the cover, with the paper already on the spiral, and laid the paper down. I put little dots of glue up into the little sections between spirals, too.....does that make sense? I used a bone folder to make sure the bond was good, and there were no bubbles. After the covers where both papered and dried, I lightly sanded the edges with sand paper for a more finished look. I used SU! Tall Tales Alphabet and black ink to stamp the word Groceries along one side, and now I have a new grocery notebook. I didn't add any embellishments, mainly because this will get a lot of wear and tear, and I wanted to keep it as simple as possible!

This one I made for my cousin Lauri for her birthday last month. I used the Mary E. 5x7" notebook, and added dividers. The dividers are cut the same size as the cover, and I added an index tab using SU!'s new tab punch. I did the cover the exact same way as the previous notebook, but added a chipboard monogram and a paper flower. I distressed everything with a complimentary color of acrylic paint using a foam brush. I used SU! Patterned Paper, and SU ! cardstock in Pretty in Pink, Mellow Moss, and Barely Banana! The chipboard monogram is from Making Memories.

For the last one, which I made my cousin Lisa for her birthday, I used pretty much the same techniques. This notebook is a 6x6. I used Cosmo Cricket Journeys patterned paper, and embellished with a quote, a paper flower, and a chipboard monogram. I did tabbed inserts again, and distressed the notebook with brown acrylic paint. Monogram is from Joann's Essentials.

I am so pleased with how these turned out. They are so much fun to make, and make really great gifts. I am thinking I may make a few for my son's teachers as end of the year teacher presents...better get started! --Keri