The Flower Girl and the Bride to Be!

Just some fun at a Bridal Expo!

Sixth Birthday

Crazy, funky, junky hat. We’ve been there we’ve done that. We see through your funky hat. Happy Birthday Kitty Kat!

Scrapping on a Shoestring

We are weathering the storm of bad economic times here in casa del scrap. My decision to forgo fulltime employment and teach half days while I write my thesis seemed like a good idea last spring. Oddly, it turns out that living on $1000 a month after insurance and taxes is really, really hard to do with a family of four.

Hello making everything myself! I have an old sewing machine, produce from the farmers market, my craft material, and a can do attitude. For honesty’s sake throw in a measure of fear and we have a plan. It may not be a good plan or a fun plan, but it’s better than nothing.

Artist Layout

This layout was risky for me. It is a very different style then what i would normally do, but, I wanted to play with a little glitter. I also had some fun prima stars and the colors all just came together. I can’t judge it, but, it was fun to make!

Recycled lamp

I had a baby lamp. Using some Cosmo Cricket & Webster PP and prima flowers, I made a new lamp.  It is nowhere near being perfect, but, I think it was a fine first attempt.

I Get Wobbly Words

Setting a place and way for remembering dear things and moments was not something that I did when I was younger. I didn’t journal and I didn’t hold onto tokens from the past. I was one of those dark things that came out of the early 90’s running fast, fearlessly, and recklessly. I had a soundtrack filled with the Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, and The Cure. We were a fast and dirty generation; not the type to hold onto mementos and many moments were bleary from emotion, excess, and living life hard and wild.

Time has kept going. I never did end up in a hole in the Ukraine. I ended up as a mommy and a Spanish teacher. I like it. I like teaching high school kids. I like knowing other languages. I even like my little suburban home with flowers, hamsters, soccer games, cross country practice, and neighbors.

Sometimes I look around and my 19 year old self, in a black patent leather dress inside a bar under age, sneers. Sometimes I listen. There is a certain je ne sais quoi about being in the VIP lounge in a famous rock venue with free drinks. It felt good to be the belle of the vampire ball.

Then I smell the grass or see the sun shining on my son. I hear about his 7:15 minute mile at cross country tryouts and I offer to run with him, if he’ll slow down 2 minutes a mile. He is so big and proud. Faster than mom, you know.

I share pinky swear secrets with my lisping princess. She really liked kindergarten better. There’s no rest time in 1st grade. She tells me that sometimes she gets wobbly words when she talks to her big brother’s best buddy’s little brother. For a minute everything glows.

Now I want to hold the pieces and the moments. I want to make sure that when my children are lost and angry in the great big world that they can run home, or at least call for money, food, and moral support. I want to fill the puzzle pieces into place.

I hear these 50 life lessons on public radio today; some are worth keeping.

You LO

A little restoration of pictures.

These were found in bad shape. I think the scrapbooking saved the photos.

Technique Note

Just a quick answer to a question about aging done in my We layout. I aged the library card dividers using a VersaMagic  ink pad in a dark brown. They are those little droplet shaped pads and I really like working with them. On a lighter note, they smell nice too!

Ah, the children and the husband.

It seems like I should tell you about Us. We are a not totally normal normal family. One, sometimes grumpy and always loud (imagine Italian stereotypical families – lots of hand gestures) Portuguese husband. One mancub twelve year old soccer playin’ but not too old for couch snuggles. One girly Gabby, a.k.a. Gabberdoole, first grade, six year old, secret dog, and secret spy girl. Oh, and the Spanish teacher mom that often fails to get everything done.

We are far from perfect. We do know that sticking together is better than trying to do everything alone. In the last three years we have been going to grad school, working, playing, and, occasionally resting. Life has thrown us some loops. A new consulting business, some of the big questions about what family means, and work, work, work.

Fortunately, we are resilient and time heals wounds. Counting smiles is better than tears and sometimes fighting to find ways to make IT more important than could of’s and should of’s. We try.