using ABC stickers for labels

Label makers can be too small, Handwriting can be too messy,

ABC stickers can be perfect!

Here I used the stickers to label pockets with the nicknames

of my kids on my Hangup Home Organizer.

I just love the Creative Memories ABC stickers in the Swirly design!!

The stickers are 3/4" x 1/2"

They also have larger ABC's at 2-1/4" x 2-1/2"

This is in my office and I'm getting ready to stuff it full of 'to do's' and 'to remember's' -- my kids' go-to place when they are looking for "that paper mom needs to sign!"

Happy Scrappin'

DL

Scrapbooking Border Maker System

I finally got to try Creative Memories new Border Maker System! My friends Marylu, Barbro  and I were using the Border Maker to make these cute goodie bags. 

The system is super easy to use as the catridges just snap into place and are easily interchangable. It gives a good, solid punch! (using quality card stock!)

Creative Memories has even put together this instructional video so you can see for yourself how to use this cool tool:

Updating kids' school scrapbooks!

I'm scrapbooking today!!

It's always such a mess when I decide to do this but I actually do have a 'system' for updating my kids' school albums.  I take out their file from the year (in this case last school year, Sugar was in 3rd grade) and I make the following 'piles':

1.  First day of school photo

2. Class photo

3. Photo of student with their teacher

4. Photos/memorabilia from major school events (i.e., Jogathon, Field Trip, etc)

5. Sports photos/Team photos

6. Self-portrait and/or handwriting sample

7. Any lists of favorite things (friends, activities, hobbies, colors, foods, etc.) - I don't make these up I only use them if I have them from school work and/or Star Student poster or something like that

8. Last day of school photo

With all the leftovers I split into:

1. Recycle/Trash

2. File in the attic for a future bonfire

3. Keep extra photos in their File for future class projects/posters/etc

Note: do not keep memorabilia in here unless it is current, it will just confuse you later when you go to scrapbook 4th grade...now is the time to clean out this file except for duplicate photos

4. Give them anything I think would be cute for their room bulletin board

Next:

1. Layout 4 pieces of 12x12 scrapbook paper on the floor or large table

2. Trim/Crop the photos and memorabilia to fit everything onto the scrapbook paper (yes, I truly only do 2 pages/4 sides per school year....well, at least for the 3rd and 4th child; don't ask me how many pages per year I gave my first-born)

3. Stick everything on with Tape Runner

4. Write/Label or type some words from mom

Voila!

Well, not voila yet, but I'm workin' on it!

Free Digital Downloads!

It's Freebie Friday! You can check my website every Friday for free digital downloads for your digital scrapbooking compliments of Creative Memories! Enjoy!

Friday Free Digital Downloads!

It's Friday and you know that that means...FREE digital downloads! Woot!

Just click on the Free Digital Downloads link (under my picture) and you can select the images you would like to use in your digital scrapbooking. This week features Winter Wedding images.

Happy Scrappin!

Simple Photo Mat

Thank you to everyone who has recently joined our new Rewards Club! This is a Club where you pay to join but then you get 15% off every order in future product credits. Use your credits on your next order or save them up for a big ticket item like our new Cricut machine!

As a THANK YOU to everyone who has gone to my Creative Memories website and signed up for my Rewards Club, I am mailing you a FREE Catalog/Idea Book plus a beautiful double-sided photo mat!  The front is shown above and the reverse side features a border of inspirational words:

The corners are pre-cut so you can easily insert a photo without any adhesive. Just pop in a photo for a quick display on a table or put the whole thing into a frame or directly onto your album page! Enjoy your little gift and your brand-new catalog and Thanks for being in the Club!

How to get rid of Badge Magic

Yay! Creative Memories to the rescue!!

I have had quite a time of getting badges and patches on my son's Cub Scout uniform.

I finally resorted to Badge Magic but as soon as I stuck his #'s on, he told me,

"Mom, those are on the wrong sleeve."

!

Ohhhh Noooooo!!

This stuff is not supposed to be easily removed.

I got the numbers off but it left a sticky residue that would not peel off.

I grabbed my Creative Memories Pick-up Square and voila!

It picked up all the glue residue right off of his uniform!

Storybook Creator 4.0

Storybook Creator 4.0 will be available October 3

you will be able to find it here

summer journal

a quick project - similar to the December Daily project

is to decorate a blank book to record your summer adventures in.

 this white blank book was part of a Kit i purchased over at My Masterpiece Art Studio

it came with some travel paper and various stickers and embellishments. using Modge Podge i was able to cut and paste the front cover into a collage.

there are only 15 pages in the journal so about a page-spread per week of summer. my friend made one for her summer trip to Europe to use as a true travel journal. i'm sticking closer to home this summer so mine will probably include:

my summer 2011 list

(things i want to do, be, have, overcome and give)

a summer poem

or two

or three

a movie ticket stub

a lock of blonde hair...(hopefully, by late August)

some grains of sand

my favorite summer photographs

of bliss

and sunshine

water splashes and sunscreen smears

dreams

musings

...

summer layout

Tannis Ross shared this cheerful summer layout using Creative Memories "Cheerful Summer 12x12 Additions".  I just love it! I hope it brightens your day! Just 2 more weeks of school here but the sun is shining bright today and I'm ready for summer, summer, summer....

a royal scrap retreat

yes, i've been scrapbooking and i owe it all to a beach retreat!

my friend Jen organized this Spring retreat in a Royal Wedding theme

Our friend Cheryl had recently returned from England and she made us Royal goodie boxes

we ate a lot of junk....i bet the reason i get some many pages done on Retreats is because i live on Coke Zero and M&M's....

we had a Royal Toast

Even the Queen, Her Royal Highness, made an appearance

It was a fun weekend! If you are needing to make a serious dent in your scrapbooking, I recommend going on a retreat. Find other people who are committed to finishing an album project or who just like to get together and be creative. It helps if they like caffeine and chocolate. It helps if they don't mind if you stay up until 3 or 4 a.m.  It helps if you have an amazing friend who organizes these things (she even brought themed movies...all the movies we 'watched' that weekend had a Love Story theme to go with the Royal Wedding).

Jen has put together many retreats with themes from Love Boat, Big Wig, etc... I can't wait to see what she comes up with next! 

Happy Scrappin',

DL :) 

my baby album 40+ years later

my mom surprised me on my birthday big time!

she made my 'baby album'....40+ years later...

i know my mom doesn't like talking about her age, but i have to say

she is 82 years 'young!' 

she does not like to scrapbook.

but as frustrating as this was to accomplish i know she can feel proud of the finished product.

when i received it, i could easily have been reduced to a puddle of tears,

so i put up my little self-protective wall (ok, my 40-foot fortress) and

graciously accepted this priceless gift without blubbering like an idiot or going into the ugly cry.

all which would have been fine, it's my mom, afterall.

 but i dont' know...i just didn't want to 'go there.'

we have gone through so much and she has faithfully been my cheerleader through it all.

always encouraging, supportive and ready with a hug.

that's my mom.

i gave up on having a baby book years ago and i took my box of photos

so i have no idea where she came up with all of these photos. she told me 'it wasn't easy!'

what i especially loved were all the little notes and treasures she slipped in there. like this one:

"Dear Mom, Thank you for saving my life this morning. Love, Donna"

I would love to know the story behind that one!! But when you get the album 40+ years later there story is forgotten.  (It's ok, mom, I'm sure it wasn't quite as dramatic as it sounds! maybe you killed a spider?)

I was pretty sweet and innocent as a child but was exposed to a ton of stuff that was not age-appropriate....well, I should say, not really appropriate for any age.  Nobody's fault, just the product of a broken home in the 60's-70's.  So it makes me sad to think of 'what could have been' and makes me lament the turn in my heart towards anything that would numb the pain.

So...rather than go down the "what if" trail, I focus and look around and say

PRAISE THE LORD!!!

for where I am today!!!

Healed and whole!! My wounds don't gape open as quickly as they used to. Instead of bandaids that kept getting ripped off, it is more like scars - they are healed but they are there.

Here are things I wanted my mom to 'remeber':

1. Smile

2. Be Patient

3. Be Understanding

4. Pray

5. Remember me!

My children would probably write that same list.

Wouldn't we all?

My mom worked for Pepperdine University and she had access to the holy grail of Office Supplies.  Here is a memorandum I sent to her in 1977:

I would please like some forms to fill out.

If you have any me and Lisa W. would appreciate it.

If you do, please give some to me and Lisa W. to play office.

Thanks,

(signed very officially by me)

What happened to that little girl who likes to fill out forms?

You would think as a mommy of 4 that I would be in heaven with all the forms I have to fill out!

This was a good reminder that what I'm doing now is what I 'played' when I was a kid.

My 'baby album' - 40+ years later.

it touched my heart and i think another little wound just healed.

<3

40% off SALE in February!

and you thought last month's 20% off albums was a sweet deal -

just look at what Creative Memories has on sale in February

at 40% off:

Photo Album Kits

8x8 and 12x12 Quick Kits

Display Accents

Power Sort Box

Memory Manager 3.0 Software

and Paper Album Kits

40% off!! they are cleaning house!!

click here to get in on the deal - February only!

Sweet!

Last chance for 20% off albums/pages sale!!

January 31 is the last chance to enjoy 20% off ALL Creative Memories albums, Refill pages, and Page Protectors!! This is an unheard of sale - never in their history have they discounted their albums like this. You can find them here: www.mycmsite.com/dwatson

I stocked up on refill pages and coversets for this year's album projects (and beyond) :)  It was just too good a deal to pass up!  Order early Sunday or Monday early because they are on EST and when the sale is over, it's over. 

A heads-up on February - I have heard that Creative Memories is having a 40% off sale on the following in February:

8x8 and 12x12 Quick Kits

Photo Album Kits

Paper Album Kits

Display Accents

Power Sort Box

Memory Manager 3.0 Software

I love a great deal and I wanted to share this with you too. Feel free to pass the link to your friends so they can enjoy the savings too!  www.mycmsite.com/dwatson

Happy Scrappin',

DL :)





time to finish December Daily album!

For all of you who started a December Daily album how did you do?

Most of us have put away the holiday decorations and in that process it's important to take a few minutes (or an hour) to finish up our December Daily project.

This week I added the extra photos, journaling and details.

I still have it out on my counter with a pen for my kids to add some more journaling.

I like to add postage stamps to mine...yes, I still receive snail mail cards (and I love them!) maybe postage stamps will be a thing of the past by the time my kids are grown-up. If not, at least these designs will be.

Cutting out programs from plays and events we attended was a quick and fun way to cover an entire daily page.

Here is our back cover. Be sure and include the year!!

Hope you had fun. Please take some time this week to finish what ya started. It feels good!

Happy Scrappin',

DL :)

Wall Print Posters!

I made these posters on-line and I love how they turned out!  There are tons of designs to choose from.

You just drag and drop your photos into the pre-designed templates, add any titles or journaling you like, and you're done! 

They arrived rolled up in a tube. They are printed on heavy-duty, matte photo paper (not cheap poster paper) so they will last a very long time. The pictures are very bright and vibrant. I brought the posters to my local Kinkos and had them mounted onto Foam Board for extra stability. 

The posters feature two plays that my daughters were in. I scanned the program and uploaded it like a photo to be included in the poster collage.  I am going to hang these in our office. When my girls saw the finished posters they felt 'famous!'  It's such a fun way to remember and celebrate an event! 

Biggest Album Sale Ever!

Great news scrapbookers!! Creative Memories, for the first time ever, is taking 20% off ALL album covers, refill pages, page protectors, pocket page albums (Picfolios), and Storybooks (digital albums)!!  January only!!  You can check it out here. Enjoy the SALE and tell all your friends!!  The original 12x12 sizes and the True 12x12 sizes plus 8x8 and 12x15 - ALL on SALE!