Insanely Busy Week!

It's been Derby week, and we have been busy! An event or activity everyday and through the weekend. Today is Oaks Day, and normally Stephen and I are at the track, but this year we decided to take the year off and just go out for the evening festivities. Let me tell you, since Wednesday, there has been little sleep and too much to drink. ;) And tomorrow, DERBY DAY! We will be partying! Again...
Derby week is more fun and eventful than the holidays in Kentucky!
So, to go with the the flow of having so much fun this week, I'm going to share a layout of me and my crazy brothers. We have a ball when we are together- no matter what the situation or location! Enjoy the weekend... I know I will! Happy Derby!

Inside Weather

Rain, rain, go away! The past several days have been so rainy and dreary. The kids, thankfully, have not been bored, but playing and pretending with each other. It's been a nice change of pace!
Here is a layout I did with some pictures of Mac and Anna that I have been holding on to for a while. I especially love the last pic on the right- look at Anna's face! So sweet...

All of these pictures were taken in 2007, but they still love to dress up and pretend together! Now, Elan is old enough to play too and the outfits fit him perfectly, where they are way too small for Mac!

Here's a close up of all the goodies on the page... lots of Studio Calico papers!

I had to make it a little "girly" because Anna wanted it for her book. I love how all three of them ask who gets the most recent layout! ;) Makes me feel good...

Have a good day!

Sketch Challenge

I love this sketch by Sketchy Thursdays:

I've had the idea of making a "quilt like" layout with these 3 photos of the kids for a while. So the sketch was the perfect shove to get it done!And I absolutely LOVE the finished product! I'm going to frame it and hang in my craft room. I love all the new paper snuck in and the little details...

It's another rainy day, but I have a fun day planned with the kiddos. Hope you have a good day too!

Owl Appreciation

Good morning... it's my day to post over at 2 Cute with a project, and this is what I made:

Next week is Teacher Appreciation week and I made this card so Mac could write his own message inside for his teacher. It will accompany a gift card as a token of thanks.

The card is 5.5 inches square and the label die cut is from tracing the packaging of some Jenni Bowlin buttons on patterned paper and cutting out. The owl typically has a flower, but I tend to cut it off, sometimes on purpose and sometimes it happens by accident! I colored in the owl using Copics and threaded a couple different pieces of twine through my chipboard button. The alphabet paper is a small strip of Sassafrass and I finished it off with a "thank you" stamp from Hero Arts.

It's raining here, and Stephen has gone off fishing for the weekend. A house full of bored kids today doesn't sound fun... we might have to pull out the big guns: PAINT.

A Card and a Layout!

Today, I'm participating in the Die Cuts R Us Challenge: Earth Day. I made this card with supplies keeping "Earth friendly" in mind. The birds are stamped on a piece of ravelled muslin and the papers are all scraps. I distressed the edges and inked them to make the card go in the direction of being a bit shabby, then hand stitched the edge of the yellow paper before attaching to the card. Enjoy!

And, as promised, the Christmas layout I did on my scrap weekend:

A close up of the embellies... my handmade buttons and star chipboard!

Have a good night!

It's safe to say...

That I didn't get chosen as a "Stamping Royalty" finalist for Paper Crafts magazine. That's okay... I just may continue to try. Last year, in 2009, I made a New Years resolution, and it was to actually send in some creations (scrap layouts and cards) to try and be considered for publication. I wasn't successful in 2009, so the same resolution was made in 2010. I have tried... and still, no dice! Boo! So, I think it's safe to say, these items I sent in didn't get picked (yet) and so I will share them here, with you...

Thinking of you...Birthday...
Thank You...
Christmas/Season's Greetings...

Love...Have a fantastic evening, we are grilling out! I'll post my Christmas layout tomorrow...

Autumn Layouts

I know it's spring, but this is usually the time that I scrap Halloween and Christmas photos from sometimes, years past! This time around, I made life a little easier by using the 6 up 4x6 page protectors by American Crafts. That way, I can stick the photos in them, a journaling card and next to it, the layout. Some examples:
The Layout...
The Page Protector...The Layout...

The Page Protector...

And this particular Halloween, I only had these 2 pictures, so I went ahead and stuck them on a layout...

So, if you're in the mood to scrap some Halloween and pumpkin patch pics, here's a little inspiration for ya'! And for tomorrow, Christmas!

Saturday Sports

Typically, on Saturday, we attend a sporting event. The last two years, Mac has played soccer and last year he picked up golf and flag football. He loves to be part of a team and works hard at practice and does his best in the scheduled games.

These layouts were made from the kit that I got at a fundraiser crop. All paper and embellies are American Crafts.

Golf lessons...

We will be off to a soccer game in a couple of hours. It looks like it's going to be a gorgeous day, so if you plan to head down to The Great Lawn for Thunder, have fun and don't forget your sunscreen! Hope you have a great Saturday!

Friday Fun

It's Friday... and I'm feelin' fine...
It was such a busy week with running around, doing errands, welcoming a new baby, and just settling back in after a scrap weekend away. It takes me a while to get back into the groove of things and not to mention catching up on laundry and cleaning house!
I have so many wonderful cards and layouts to share with you that I didn't know where to start, so I decided to do a little of both!
First, one of my favorite layouts from my trip was of Elan and Uncle Scotty. I love the grid of circles below the pictures, that idea/inspiration came from the 52 More Scrapbook Challenges by Elizabeth Kartchner, page 40 if you have it! :)


I punched circles out of some of my favorite papers and then used stickers, chipboard and ink to embellish.
Once the pictures and paper circles were in place, I doodled an edge around the border with a ink pen. This layout came together rather quickly! And I love how it turned out!

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Next up, a couple of cards I made last week to send out to some friends for the birthday treats they gave me. I am loving the color yellow right now. I made both cards with scraps! Gotta love that!

This flower is made from black crepe paper... isn't it cute? My friend Mindy made it!

Enjoy! Have a great weekend! I have a date tonight with Mr. Wonderful and this weekend Thunder Over Louisville kicks off the Derby festivities!

We Welcome With Love...

Claudia Scott Norrenbrock

April 14, 2010

Claudia, just minutes after she was born.

Baby feet, still purple from birth...

A tender moment between my brother and his oldest, Kendall. Kendall will be the BEST big sister.

My sister-in-law, Lara with her new bundle of joy. How gorgeous does Lara look right after giving birth? I know... she looks stunning.

I'm thrilled to add to my collection of nieces! She is as beautiful as the rest of them!

8 Years...

It's my anniversary... married 8 years and it seems to have gone by so fast! I laugh when people ask how we met because I was the one to ask him out first, and then about a dozen more times after that before he actually asked me out. I set eyes on him and said to myself, "that's the one I'm going to marry." And I did. And he is great. Everything I could ever want or imagine in a person, I have found in him. He is my balance, my rock, and my comic relief.

Isn't he handsome? Sometimes, I can't believe he's mine! Not only did he marry me, but he gave me 3 beautiful, healthy children that he loves and adores...

The little one looks like me, but acts like Stephen! Life is so good... Happy Anniversary, honey!

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And now, for the real reason all of you scope out my blog... the card...

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My girls weekend at Crop-a-Doodle-do was absolutely wonderful! Way too much delicious food, pampering, good nights sleep, girl time, and a ton of scrappin'! Holy smokes... I got so many layouts done! I'll be posting a couple at a time as soon as I get them uploaded! Yay!

Freshly Hatched...

My friend, Dana, just had a sweet baby boy and I made this card for her! Today is also my day to post on the 2 Cute blog and this was my project. It's actually the Easter Chickie digi image without the decorated eggs. I think the spring colors and image were perfect for a baby card!

For a list of supplies, check the 2 Cute blog here.

I'm leaving for the weekend to scrap my little heart out at a wonderful retreat called Crop-a-doodle-do. It's fab... I'll be back Monday with loads (I hope) of layouts to share!

Favorite Shoes...

Last summer, Elan saw a pair of shoes in a store and fell in love with them. Fortunately, I loved them too! Little red canvas KEDS. He wore them all summer long with and without socks. A few weeks ago, he pulled them out again and tried so hard to fit them on his too big feet. He was so mad he couldn't get them on... I had to make a layout of these pictures so I wouldn't forget our favorite red shoes.

Supplies are a random collection of goodies: Jenni Bowlin crepe paper, vintage buttons, Tessa Ann sneaker button, Studio Calico, College Press Cosmo Cricket and October Afternoon paper, stamps, ink, and little letter stickers.

I'm starting to prepare for a weekend getaway at a scrap retreat! That's what Stephen gave me for my birthday! ;) I leave Friday morning for some creative, girly scrappin' and pampering! Can't wait!

Winner Day!

It's my birthday! Today, lots of fun is happening, so I'll share a super fun layout:

Using the wonderful Dear Lizzy line from American Crafts...

This is at a baby shower I co-hosted with my girls. The above picture is of me and one one my oldest friends, Megan. We have known each other since infancy and now she lives in Chicago... miss her dearly, but seeing her in July! Yay!

And, we have a WINNER! Generated by Random.org with a minimum of 1 and a maximum of 71, number 12 was chosen and that my friends is MINDY JETT! Mindy, you just won some Studio Calico goodness:

And for those of you that didn't win, but wish you had, here is a special treat just for you... I have been uploading some new stationery to my store and here are a couple samples:

Aren't they cute? Already made some for mom and a few girlfriends! So... for you, my friend, a coupon that can be used at the online store: 20% off your entire purchase! Visit Paper Doll Stationery and at the checkout, enter the coupon code SPRING for 20% off! Happy Birthday to you too!

Mojo Monday!

Hello there! I have a layout today for the Sketchy Thursdays challenge. This is the sketch... I turned it clockwise for my take...

And a closer view for one of my favorite things to add to a layout... EMBELLISHMENTS! Love these vintage buttons from GCD Studios!

And... did you know that The Pink Elephant is starting a Scrap Challenge on their blog? This week, they are asking, "What's your fave thing to use on a layout?" Mine... Embellishments!

*READ ME: Don't forget about my giveaway! Tomorrow I draw a random name to win the goodies 2 posts down... read all about it!*

Happy Easter (weekend!)

Not only is it Easter weekend, but the beginning of Spring Break! I forgot to post my card yesterday that I had on the 2 Cute blog...

This is a brand new digi image that will soon be in rubber!

Hope you have a great Easter weekend and find lots of eggs! ;) If you haven't seen my current GIVEAWAY, click here.

No Joke...

It's a GIVEAWAY! Happy April, people! Last weekend, I won a sketch layout contest at a totally awesome crop hosted by the super talented, Shannon Zickel. My prize, you ask? A fully stocked Studio Calico kit! Well, I already have the kit since I am a subscriber, so I am sharing with YOU on this first lovely day of GIVEAWAYS for April!

My Winning Entry:

And here is what one lucky winner will receive:

An oval scalloped chipboard album, a full yard of velvet scalloped ribbon and a limited edition stamp set from Studio Calico that has 4 fab stamps! YUM!

So, you ask... what do I need to do to win?

1.) You succumb to the pressure and FOLLOW this blog. It's okay to follow, I'm cool... and sometimes I have an inspiring post with some creativity! ;) Click the button on the right hand column... go on, you know you want to!

2.) Pass it on! Let me know if you post this giveaway on your blog and it will increase your chances of winning.

3.) And, for a third chance, leave a comment!

I will draw a winner via Random.org on Tuesday, April 6th... good luck, friend!