Happy Valentine’s Day (PHOTO HEAVY!)

Posted on February 14, 2011 by daydesigns
Happy V-Day everyone!
Cupid was out in force in our house this morning!! The girls are already hyped on sugar (sorry teachers!!) This was the scene last night before I went to bed:

Marley was responsible for the heart confetti – I think she may have to start her own crafty blog soon!!! LOL!
I know I gave you sneaks of my Valentines to my girls but here they are in their entirity.
First up, Marley:

Paige:

Journalling: “2. Because you are so BRAVE!”

And last but most definitely not least, LC:

Journalling reads: “I love that you can’t wait to get outside and play! That activity brings out your biggest grins.”

Journallin: “A book about you wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the thing you love most … DEETEE! I love it too!!” Deetee is what she calls her blanket.

Journalling: “Never was a saying more appropriate! You charm everyone you come in contact with.”

This is what the back of all three looks like.

Well, there you have it. Thanks for sticking with me, I know this post has a ton of pictures in it!!
It really wasn’t a huge amount of work whatever you may think. The hardest part was figuring out which of the millions of pictures I have of the girls to include.
Oh, and if I may indulge for a moment (like you have a choice!!) I’d like to share what Marley created for me. Seriously, I think this girl has a future in this crafting world – I can’t wait to be able to do real projects with her!!

Inside she wrote: “To: Mom. Happy Valentine day. I love you so much. Every valentine day I love you more. I love you every day, every wekk (okay, we all know she means week) , every month and every year. love Marley”
Seriously?! Could I be more loved? Talk about melting my heart!!
Got to run and take her lunch – they are having a friendship lunch and she is responsible for macaroni and cheese  and juice boxes.
Hope you are all having a day as full of love as mine!!
Posted in challenges, LC, Marley, Paige | 4 Comments

Cards for the PAC

Posted on February 8, 2011 by daydesigns

Remember I said I got to do some scrapping with friends this past weekend? Well, it was a blast! And I actually got a lot accomplished. I took a lot of ribbing for how quiet I was! To be honest, it was just nice to be with a group of like minded women and to have the time and resources to be crafty. With no kids to bug me every 5 minutes!! I was happy to just put my head down, get on with my projects and let the conversations wash over me. This particular group of women have been cropping together for awhile so the stories and projects were fun to listen to/see. Participation not necessarily required!

Listen to me wax all philosophical!!!

Onto the cards!!

My mandate was 12 cards which became 2 of each design – 6 designs total. We were working on two lots for the silent auction for our upcoming PAC dance/fundraiser at the beginning of March. Jenn found these two cute lunch boxes that we are using to hold the cards. Here are my cards and one of the lunch boxes:

 A female birthday card.

A male birthday card.

A Mother’s Day card (inside it just simply says “Celebrate Mother” – or something like that!)

A Thank You card.

A girly baby card.

A boy baby card.

The final Lot. The other lunch box is green.

And here are some of the Crazy Cropping Crew (I’m sure they won’t mind the new title!) As you can see, there were martinis! A little alcohol most definitely helps you scrap!!
Thanks for letting me horn in on your crop ladies!
Until next time …
Oh, and in case you think that all I did in the 9 hours I was there was 6 cards, I also got Marley’s Valentines Day surprise done. But pictures of that will have to wait!!
LC just woke up so I’d better post this and go get her.
See ya!
Posted in Cards, Scrapbook | 1 Comment

A quick 5 on Friday – Feb 4

Posted on February 4, 2011 by daydesigns
Hi everyone! Time for a quick recap from the Day family!
1. Rants
Thanks for the kind (and really funny) comments on my rant post the other day. I must say it is so nice to know that I am not going crazy. That others are going through similar things and still others know exactly what I’m talking about.
2. School Lunches
Chalk it up to “live and learn”.
Marley has been making my life progressively harder this year where her school lunches are concerned. First I had to learn that the 10 – 15 minutes they are allotted to eat isn’t enough time to eat a whole sandwhich, apple and treat so I started packing 1/2 sandwhiches. Then came the steady stream of “I don’t like that anymore”s. So now, half way through the year, she has declared she doesn’t like, ham sandwhiches, cheese sandwhiches, bananas, yogurts, granola bars, Nutrigrain bars, oranges, hummus … I’ve probably missed some things. The last straw came when she declared she’d eat a jam sandwhich which I dutifully packed and which was summarily left uneaten. Grr!!!
I started talking to some of my Mom friends about it this week and learned this is completely normal behaviour. Annoying, but normal. For a 6 year old anyway! The solution? Don’t pack treats.
Doh!
Why didn’t I think of that?!
How many times have I told myself that the kids won’t starve themselves? That they WILL eat the good stuff eventually if I stick to my guns, don’t back down and ride out the tantrums. Too many to count! So why has this taken me so long to figure out?! Anyway, today is Day One of the new, no treats until you prove you will eat all the healthy stuff first regime. Marley did not look all that impressed this morning but I’m sticking to my guns this time!! Wish me luck!
3. OLW
I’m still stumped as to how to capture “Release” in photographs this month but I’m sure something will reveal itself. My rant to the blogosphere was definitely cathartic and served its purpose of releasing my frustations. Eventually. I was still feeling wound up the next day but … release, release, release.
4. Crafty Playdates

Marley asked if her friend  Amanda could come over yesterday for a playdate. We had nothing on the books so I figured “sure”. This meant that Amanda’s younger sister came too – not a problem and completely expected. Sarah and Paige were at preschool together last year and are best buds. The two older girls wanted to make something for the two younger girls. Marley had brought home a book from the library the other day on girly crafts and has been tenacious (read: buggin’ the heck out of me!!) about doing them.
Here’s what they (okay, we) came up with:

AND they all helped clean up the mess! Yay!!
5. Best for last …
I get to go cropping tomorrow!! Yippee! I’ve been wanting to go to a crop for months now but haven’t been able to swing it. Our PAC is having a dance in a few weeks and part of the fundraising efforts is a silent auction. One of my scrapping friends thought putting together a basket of hand made cards would be a good auction item. That’s what we are planning to do tomorrow. Another scrapping friend was already having some women over tomorrow to scrap so I am tagging along to make some cards. Not my usual genre but I’m just excited to have some “me creative” time.
Alright, that’s my quick 5. Next week I promise some sneaks of my Valentines Day project for the girls and maybe even some of those cards. Have a great weekend!!
Posted in Five on Friday, OLW - One Little Word | 1 Comment

My Family – Mini Album

Posted on January 20, 2011 by daydesigns

Almost a year ago I attended my very first Crop (see this post) where I signed up to make a mini album at one of the classes offered. I was still pretty new to the scrapping world and really had no idea what I’d signed up for. During that class I started to feel the full effects of the stomach flu bug I was incubating so didn’t finish the album at the Crop. I brought it home intending to finish it and gift it to Greg on his 40th. Oops! Sorry Hon!!

I recently moved all the scrapping supplies from the dining room into our home office and have spent the last little while trying to get them organized to my liking. During this process I came across the unfinished album plus the pictures (now a year old or more!) and decided to finish it. Part of my Happiness Project is to finish those nagging unfinished projects I’ve had on my plate for ages. Only this time I decided I would make it for myself. A Brag Book of sorts. Something for me to keep in my purse. It’s done now. Want to see it? Ha, ha, ha! Like you have a choice!!

Thanks for looking!
Posted in Scrapbook | 1 Comment

Five on Friday and my first Blogger Award

Posted on January 14, 2011 by daydesigns
Welcome to Five on Friday!
A new feature where I can recap some goings on around here.
(I saw this on another blog that I follow and I like the idea. Hopefully I can remember to make this a regular feature! LOL!!)
1. Project 12 – December 2010.
I’d almost forgotten about this little project of mine in all the post-Christmas chaos and stomach flu episodes that seem to be never ending. But a few days ago I dug out my stuff and got to work. Here it is.
And close ups of the left and right hand pages.
A close up of the title. 
This was a sub title that I added into the dark green square because I felt it looked a bit stark. The daisy was a double layered job that I took apart and then added the bling brad to. 
I also worked on a title page- but it’s not quite finished yet. Soon the album will be complete! I’m working on putting a slideshow on the blog somewhere to show the whole album. Stay tuned!
2. Skating Lessons
Marley and Paige started skating lessons this week. Marley has taken them before but this was Paige’s first time on skates and she was AWESOME! Greg keeps talking about how she has all this innate athletic ability – I think he’s onto something! She was pretty shaky when we first put the skates on (and she needs to learn to watch where she’s stepping!! Poor Marley!!) but from the time I left her rink side desperately gripping a chair for support, to the time I walked to the viewing area, she was standing on her own. By the end of the 25 minute lesson she was able to get up all by herself – sometimes quite quickly! Kids constantly amaze me with how quickly they can pick up new skills.
Marley is in this picture – 2nd from the right, white helmet. She took to the ice like she hadn’t been off it for 8 months!!
Paige is the one in the pink (of course!) This was right at the beginning of the lesson – after she’d let go of the chair. 
Here she is half way through the lesson. They had to pick up a toy from the pile on the ice (where the other kids are) and skate under the arch and over to the board you can see in the picture above where they were supposed to put it through one of the holes.
No blog post would be complete without a picture of LC being LC! Here she is running amok!! 
3. Thank you.
Thank you to everyone who has read my posting about the Berg family and who is praying for them. Your comments to me have been heart warming. They all continue to need our prayers so please keep them coming!
4. OLW – Release
To be honest, right now I am just trying to release the GI bug that won’t seem to let me go! Greg and I both woke up at 3:00AM last Thursday with identical desires to throw up! Thank goodness for my friend Trish who took Marley to school, Paige to ballet and then hung onto her for an all day playdate with her own daughter. I felt better the next day and managed to get through the weekend but this week I’ve had a couple of relapses including waking up at 3:00AM yesterday morning with similar nausea symptoms. Yuck! Now I’m back on the no dairy, no sweets, no nothing diet until … well until I can’t take it any longer or I am better!
5. I’ve joined a Book Club!
Many years ago my sorority sisters and I had a book club that was TONS of fun. I loved the exposure to books I wouldn’t have picked on my own accord, and the social aspect was great too. As part of my Happiness Project, I am trying to find ways of socializing with my girlfriends on a regualr basis. It’s incredibly hard to organize social things with my busy Mom friends but I figured joining something like this would be perfect. I already know at least two people in the group and who knows, once I actually attend a meeting (February!) I may recognize others. Also, I’m trying to watch less TV and read more so this will force me to at least read more!!
Okay, that’s my Five! Now for something completely different … I was nominated for a Blog Award by my blogger friend Roxy. I “met” her through the December Daily project. She has nominated me for this …
Wow!! Thanks Roxy!!
The rules state that I must tell 8 things about myself and then pass it on to 4 others. Here goes … (1) I have hazel eyes but all 3 of my girls inherited their Dad’s blue eyes (so much for the whole brown eyes are dominant thing!) … (2) I hate mushrooms and can pick them out of a dish at 30′! … (3) I was born in London, England (okay, okay, a suburb of London called Sutton) … (4) before the age of 8 I’d moved 8 times and lived in 4 different countries on 3 different continents … (5) I’m an orphan – technically although I was folded into a fantastic family that I can’t imagine living without now … (6) When I was pregnant with Marley I craved McDonalds chicken fajitas and would go through the drive-thru on my way home from work to get some! … (7) I am a total, complete, unadulterated chocoholic (much to my waistlines’ demise!) … and … (8) hmmm … I played the flute in high school.
There you go! 8 useless Alison facts! LOL!
I am going to pass this along to my blogging buddies Jana, Christine, Sandra and Andrea. You ladies ROCK on your respective blogs!!
Posted in Five on Friday, LC, Marley, Paige, Project 12, Scrapbook | Comments Off on Five on Friday and my first Blogger Award

One Little Word – Release

Posted on January 4, 2011 by daydesigns
The lovely and talented Ali Edwards (instigator of my recent December Daily Project) also does something slightly different every January. She doesn’t make a New Years Resolution, she picks One Little Word (OLW) that she wants to focus on in the coming year. I read about her journey in 2010 with interest and even attempted to choose a word last year but had trouble pinning one down. I know now that I wasn’t ready.
This year I have resolved to play along. I signed up for her class through Big Picture Classes and have been working at it already.
My word is RELEASE.
As you may know, I’ve been struggling with feelings of unhappiness for quite some time now. I started seeing a therapist in the fall and she has been helping me understand some of my natures but there’s still a lot to be accomplished. One thing that has emerged is that I am holding on to a lot of harmful emotions so I felt that a word like ‘release’ is perfect as a daily reminder to let them go. Let go of the frustrations, the resentment, the fear, and especially, the anger. I don’t see the need to go into the reasons behind the fact that I have all these pent up emotions right now, suffice it to say that I am hopeful that 2011 is the year I free myself.
We will be doing various exercises throughout the year to keep our word present in our daily lives. The first assignment (actually, this was a pre-assignment) was to make a Title Page. Here’s mine:
We could download the background artwork and print it off onto white cardstock then add our word and embellishments. So that’s what I did. The letters are Basic Grey and the flower, buttons and butterfly brad are from my stash.
Here are a couple close-ups. 

Our next assignment was a bit harder. It was to define and explore our word. We were given another PDF to download and print off. It contained pre-printed boxes with certain words on them – we had to fill in the rest.
Once they were filled in, cut out and put into a holder, mine looks like this: 
This is an 8 1/2′ x 11″ trading card protector sheet not the Pink Paisley 9 pocket sheet that Ali listed on our class supply list. I realized once I’d cut the cards out that they were quite a bit smaller than my pockets. I’ve ordered the Pink Paisley version so we’ll see what the size difference is when it gets here (Thursday apparantly! Woo hoo!) For now though, this is what it looks like.
Also, I cut small pieces of Basic Grey papers to add into the other pockets. They may stay, they may not. I figure this is the type of project I can manipulate over the year as my understanding of my word changes.
Some close ups …
My definition card reads:
Release: To free from something that binds, fastens, or holds back; let go. To relinquish (a right or claim). A DELIVERANCE.
Next to it I made a Title Tag. I  took a Martha Stewart tag, placed my word letters onto it then sprayed it with distressing ink. Once I removed the letters (and fixed the over spray by using a white pen) this is what I got. For my first misting job, I am quite pleased! Thanks Roxy for the tips!!
A couple more boxes … 
I chose this word Because: it fits with the actions I have started and wish to continue – letting go of resentment and fear; losing weight; letting go of frustrations over body changes. Feeling free finally!
Okay, so I haven’t started my weight loss journey yet but that is definitely on my list of things to do this year!!
Ali also prompted us to look up our word in a Thesaurus. Here are some of the alternate words for Release: ABSOLUTION, acquittal, charge, clemency, commute, DELIVERANCE, discharge, emancipation, exemption, exoneration, FREEDOM, freeing, let-off, LIBERATION, liberty, lifeboat, life saver, RELIEF, spring, turnout.
To be honest I’m not sure about some of them but … it gives one something to think about! 
Our Invitation card.
With this word I invite:
a lightening
a change of heart
change of attitude
new experiences
new challenges
renewed intimacy
renewed relationahips
calmness 
And finally, we were to see if we could find a quotation. Here is mine (I couldn’t fit the whole thing on the card):
It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power. –Alan Cohen
Pretty powerful stuff, eh?
Our last assignment for this month is to take a current picture of ourselves and print it off in 5×7 for the back of our title page. I haven’t printed mine off yet but here it is.  
Hmmm …. not sure why I want to save THAT for posterity but … we’ll play along!
Thanks for checking me out!
See you next time.
Posted in challenges, OLW - One Little Word | 2 Comments

December Daily – Days 24 and 25

Posted on December 31, 2010 by daydesigns
They’re finally finished!! Yay!
I’m not sure if I’m going to add a page for today (the 31st). Last week I thought I would but today, having finally completed Days 24 and 25 I am feeling like I want to put the album and all the Christmas supplies away. Plus, Marley has been throwing up since 4:00AM so I’m a bit tired and not feeling like partying much. We’ll see …
Day 24: Christmas Eve

So here is the back of the main page for Day 23 which I made a part of Day 24.
It fit well between the days as the story of Seeing Santa spanned the two days. Marley really, really wanted to see Santa but we couldn’t stay on the 23rd and the line had already been closed when we tried to go back that night so I decided to try to get in to see him first thing on the 24th. And we experienced a Christmas Miracle of sorts! I managed to get my coveted picture (that I’ve missed for the past few years) of all 3 girls with Santa. And Paige even smiled!! I love that girl!

Remember the Elf Cards? Well, even Santa and Mrs Claus have them! The DQ wrapper and the picture of LC enjoying her cone are from the 23rd.

On the back side of this baseball card add-in, I included a picture of me enjoying Greg’s sister Christine’s massage chair with my glass of wine and one of Marley telling Santa her wish list.
We went to the Nielsen’s for Christmas Eve. The big event was a Crokinole Tournament. I was knocked out immediately (no surprise) and Greg took the Championship (equally, no surprise there!) The prize was a stack of scratch and wins which gave Greg a total prize of $35.00!!

I made a flap for the back page so I could add more pictures (surprise, surprise!) Here we see a couple shots I took with the self timer (my camera has this amazing function that it will actually take up to 10 self timer shots in a row – awesome!!) It is a Danish tradition to dance around the Christmas tree while singing Christmas carols (Aaron is Danish) so we tried it this year for the first time. It was a lot of fun!

Inside the flap are some snapshots of the evening.
Cousin Suzanne had some one on one time with LC.
Greg took a little “trash” break from the kid chaos.
Grandpa read “Twas the Night Before Christmas” to the kids.
We got a group shot of all the cousins.
And finally, a shot of Griffin, Paige, LC and Jasper in the tub. There were so many bubbles I feel safe showing in on the net!!
Day 25: Christmas Day
I decided to have a large picture of the Santa Loot on the main page for today. Santa was very generous this year and gave Marley a scooter, Paige a new bike and LC a standup car ramp thingy (she’s all into things that move!) Paige was so dumbfounded at the sight of a new bike that she almost burst into tears. I thought I’d cry too! Her old bike has these hard plastic wheels that would just spin in place half the time and no way to brake. This one has “real” tires and brakes when you pedal backwards. Awesome!

The next few pages are collages.

This is the back of the main page. It’s a collage of opening up the stockings and trying out the new toys.

Next is a collage of opening up the presents under the tree – the ones from us, Ammee and Poppa, and Aunts Jean and Moira.

The last collage (which I just adhered back to back with the one above) is of the present opening (call it Presents Phase III) with Grandma and Grandpa.
There were a lot of presents to open this year!!

The last page is a selection of 4 4×6 showing scenes of the evening.
Another group shot with the cousins – Paige looks positively pained!!
A shot of the kids table. As I say in the journalling, the kids had fun (especially opening the crackers) but didn’t do a lot of eating!

And lastly, a picture of Greg carving the turkey. He was a bit coerced by his Mom but did a fine job.
And a picture of the adult table. I think this was the only time we were all sitting together that night. What with various kids needed attention at one point or another, the adults table was more of a musical chairs game than anything! Ah well, one day!!
Well there you have it. My first December Daily!
I’ve really enjoyed this process. I look forward to next year (and have already started stashing things for it!) Right now though, I’m more than ready to move on to new projects.
We are now back from our New Year’s Eve party (we tend to celebrate the Maritimes Midnight at 8:00 our time for the kids) and I can unequivocably say that I will not be adding anything more to this album. I’m happy with the story as is.
Thanks for sticking with me during this process!
Posted in December Daily | 1 Comment