R - E - S - P - E - C - T

R - E - S - P - E - C - T . . . find out what it means to me!

So . . . the news is good. For anyone who read my last blog, everything is healthy and good. My colonoscopy was A.O.K. and in my efforts to continue my public service announcement and encourage everyone "eligible" to shrug the fear and go, I have a couple of items to share with each of you.

First, the prep really isn't all that bad. Yes . . . I was a bit hungry in the hours leading up to the prep, but once I started the drinking of the delicious soapy, lemony, salty drink . . . there was no turning back. It was not nearly as bad as I expected, and I will willingly do this again when the time comes.

Second, R - E - S - P - E - C - T. What does this mean to me? I know . . . you are thinking that this means something creative. Is it an anagram for something? What do these letters stand for? Well, it's all about the embarrassment of the procedure. If there was one word I could use to describe the procedure, it would be "RESPECTFUL." I expected to feel embarrassed just because . . . well, you know . . . just because. Let me tell you, it was extremely respectful. That is the one word that I would use to describe the procedure, and if you don't feel that way after yours, then let me give you the name of my GI group!

Third . . . if you're eligible and nervous . . . need someone to keep you grounded before, during (well, not really during, during . . . but as you walk in and as you come out the door), or after, consider asking me! I am more than willing to drop you off, pick you up, hold your hand until you walk in the door . . . whatever!

Just do it. Feel free to call me . . . don't be afraid to just call me . . . call me and I'll be around!

And now . . . I can break free of my PSA for Colon Cancer . . . and I get back to supporting my brother and being creative.

Wait for it . . . the creative items will be coming real soon.

Phew!

Pardon My Break From Creativity

Pardon my break from creativity, as I bring you my own version of a public service announcement. I'm all about cameras, but I'd like to take a timeout from being creative and talk about one camera in particular. And I hope those who think it's "too much" will forgive the imposition.

My creativity has been a bit "out the window." While I have a ton of projects to get to this week, my mind has been completely pre-occupied with other things. At the top of my list is the one thing that I've dreaded throughout my forties. The thought of turning 50 and having to succumb to the dreaded "you're turning 50" medical test. I think woman can somehow identify. I spent the last few years of my thirties dreading the mammogram. Sure, it's not the most comfortable test in the world, but we all manage through it, and we should.

This is the medical test you've more than likely never gone through before, and it seems like it would be the most uncomfortable, embarrassing thing on the face of the earth. A little tiny camera traveling in places you would never want to go. I'm a scrapper, and I'm all about cameras, but I promise there will be no glossy 5" x 7" souvenir photos of my colon in any of my scrapbooks! I seriously know very few people in their late 40's who aren't thinking about their impending test. How to skirt past it (a friend recently told me she scheduled her physical a month prior to turning 50 to confuse her physician). I also know many people past 50 who refuse to go.

The colonoscopy is not meant for blogs . . . I know this because my blog spell check didn't recognize it and gave suggestions of other words . . . including colonialism. No connection between the two words, and I suppose we should dismiss the Merriam-Webster's third definition . . . control by one power over a dependent area or people. Now isn't that interesting. I'll give that one credence as the gastroenterologist has control over my dependent area. But while it might not be meant as a topic for open discussion, it is consuming my life right now and will until I get the results.

My family has been immensely open about it since early March, when my 50-year old brother was diagnosed with Stage 4 Colon Cancer. He celebrated his birthday and got the diagnosis just two days later. And whether it is bad or good, the family and extended family can't go a few days without comparing notes on their progress with consultations and procedures. It has extended beyond the family, as I now have a few friends who had put off scheduling and because I've shared my story, they are taking action.

I'm not 50. I'm only 48. And while I've dreaded it for a few years, my brother's diagnosis provided me with an "Advance to Early Detection" card. It's not quite as exciting as a Monopoly "Advance to Reading Railroad." I sure as heck won't get the $200.00 for passing "Go" or the opportunity to buy the railroad. The reality is that I share DNA . . . the same dark hair, brown eyes, coloring, likes and dislikes of my brother, who is just 15 months older than me. We were both picky eaters and still are to some extent. What I hope to gain is peace of mind. The procedure that I dreaded is very small in comparison to what could be even more frightening . . . the outcome.

I don't know how many people read this blog, and I don't think it is a huge number. I just want to encourage anyone who reads to share the story of the guy who turned 50 and was tired and had a cough he couldn't shake. He had no other symptoms.

So if you have a family history, get your "early in." If you're 50 or over . . . don't put it off. I'm one who dreaded it, and I am so looking forward to getting past this so I can be creative again.

New Product - New Venture - New Jersey

The past few days have been about getting some new things in my life. With so many stressful things going on, it seemed like it was time for a bit of "renewal." For the last four days or so, I took some time off from my 9 to 5 office job and brought some new things into my life to get a recharge.

First came some new product. Basic Grey "Green at Heart." Picked it up to create a layout for a "solution" at NESC. Fell in love! Those darn felt flowers are AMAZING. Those papers are absolutely "Springy." Not only did I create a layout, but I began to see the possibilities for so many other projects. This picture does not do the product justice. It is absolutely adorable.

Then came the new venture . . . ATC Camp. That's Artist Trading Card Camp. The group had met once last month and I missed out on it. Did I need something new to add to my plate. Well, I must have because I signed on for it, and I even agreed to teach the next one coming up in April. I figured if I could attend the March session and understand it, then I could teach it. Right? Well, I get it. I got all excited. I turned, yet again, to "Green at Heart" for my inspiration. The theme of the cards was to be "Spring." Can't get much Springier than those bright, vibrant colors. I cut. I created. I inked. I stamped. I colored. I stickled. I signed. I numbered. My cards were done.

Yet as I went to put them into a plastic bag to take to NESC, I realized . . . I should have a box to carry them. I remembered that I had an empty Maya Road lunch tin that was sitting around on the floor near my computer just waiting to be loved. Back to the "Green at Heart" collection where I found some paper, some die cuts . . . matched it up with some ribbon and before I knew it I had created a beautiful tin to transport my ATC's. On the box it says . . . "A little birdie told me . . . Make ATC Cards." And the best part about ATC camp was seeing all the great cards. So different!

I'm so looking forward to leading the group next month and having the opportunity to share my time with such awesome women!

Now comes the part about the jersey. That's a new jersey . . . not New Jersey. It's not a place, it's a thing.

So many people are surprised by my love of hockey. I love the game . . . everything from the arena smells to the fast paced game. I love the skill, love to watch the players develop and make their way to the NHL. And I love combining my love of hockey with my love for scrapbooking. For many years I have created scrapbooks for the Hartford Wolf*Pack players, and as I blogged a few weeks ago, this year is no exception. I have two really great guys that I have been following this year.

At tonight's game, the guys were wearing these great new jerseys that I believe were designed by a fan. They were running a silent auction that would later turn to a regular auction for fans to bid on game worn jerseys off the players backs. I always leave these auctions disappointed. The jerseys are expensive, and I can never bid that high. But this year I felt like I was in the market for a new jersey. I had my eye on a few in particular. I quickly calculated what I was willing to spend, found the sheet for one that I really wanted and I placed my bid. I didn't go a mere $25 over the last bid . . . I put my top bid.

A few hours later, between the 2nd and 3rd period, my husband showed up to tell me that I had won my jersey. Just mere seconds after he told me, my jersey was involved in a fight. It was right in front of me, and I got to see my game worn jersey go a few rounds. I turned to my husband and said, "That's my jersey." Any doubt he had about the expense was gone. We realized as we watched my #27 jersey get grabbed, stretched, yanked, and pulled that it was meant to be. Rick said, "It's a sign." And a short time later he was on the ice with Jared Nightingale . . . #27 . . . getting my jersey. The somewhat stinky thing made the trip home where it will hit the washer tomorrow and be on my back for the next game. So . . . new product, new venture and new jersey. The combination has been a great renewal!

It was a great weekend.

Creative Ramblings

I have been so, so busy that I've not had time to blog. Between work and projects, I've just been swamped . . . and then there is that thing they call "my personal life." It's been a little nuts. I've been really busy hitting deadlines on some scrapbooking projects. At the top of my list this month was getting my player scrapbooks done for the Hartford Wolf*Pack players I follow each year. This year I have two player books that I'm working on. The first is a young defenseman, Corey Potter, who has been with the organization for a couple of years and has even had the opportunity to play up with the New York Rangers this year. Defensemen are great to scrapbook because they spend a lot of time down at my end of the arena! My second player is a two-time Olympic athlete, Andres Ambuhl, who just returned from Vancouver, having played for the Swiss hockey team. Andres is a fast forward, and what was really neat about scrapbooking for Andres is finding some great on-line shots of him playing in Vancouver that I could include in the book. He really seemed excited to see them, and I got him to autograph one photo for me for my own scrapbook (now just where did I put that darn photo). There is #10 on the left there admiring a Little Yellow Bicycle Generation Z layout of himself chasing the puck. Nothing better than combining two of my great loves . . . hockey and scrapbooking.

My creativity has been a bit sparce . . . but I fired it up a bit tonight. My favorite day of the month is the Employee Crop at New England Scrapbook Company in Canton. It is usually my time to look at my upcoming schedule of classes and get busy picking out paper, ribbon, and embellishments. Even better than the scrapbooking is the company. I get to scrapbook with not just creative people, but awesomely cool, fun and creative people. It's an afternoon/evening filled with laughter . . . and boy did I need it.

I found tonight interesting. I was working on a Designer Series kit for the store, and then buckled down on the store's monthly challenge. If you haven't checked out the challenge . . . you should. It is a lot of fun. But what was interesting about the challenge is that I was working on my layout to post, and while working looked over and saw Vanessa working on a page using the same paper line. A short while later I looked over and saw Chris working on a class page using the exact same paper line. Great minds! Great paper! Great embellishments! I highly recommend that you check it out in the beach section at NESC. It is TPC Studios paper and embellishments called "Undersea Adventure." Love it! Love the paper. Love the ribbon. Love the embellishments. Love the bling. What was really fun for me was having great photos of my daughter and her friends at the beach this past summer. Found them on Facebook and sent them to Snapfish. I hope to make a nice 12 x 12 album for her (one of my many projects on the list that is not started).

Wait! Strike that! It is started now. One layout down . . . many more to go.

Hope to post more soon . . . but I've still got that challenge to announce, so . . . later!

What the Flock?

Seriously! Is anybody home? Where is the woman who is supposed to "paws to scrap." Lately, she has not been "pawsing" or pausing at all. Not even a little tiny bit. It has seriously been a lot of running and running and running. My Monday to Friday job has been insanely busy. The stress of "changes to come" has left me feeling less than excited about doing much when I get home each night. There have been some added "volunteer" roles that required me to get up extremely early and yet didn't allow me to leave the office any earlier. The lack of sunshine has got me into my winter "I don't want to do a thing" mode.

I've been to the Big Apple twice in the last fifteen days . . . saw "Wicked" and caught a Rangers game just before the NHL had their Olympic break. I also saw the Lion King at the Bushnell. So while I've not been scrapbooking too much, I have been doing some other great things.

And I can't say that I haven't been creative, because I still have managed some class layouts for NESC, and have been working each month on the page challenge! Are you in on the page challenge? It is a great opportunity to get a page done using your own stash (you know, all those things you've bought and not used). And my idea flow has not stopped. So much to do . . . so little time!

My most creative venture in the last couple of weeks is flocking (that's flocking, folks . . . keep it clean). I flocked Oscar the Grouch for a class at NESC. If you've not flocked, you must consider it. What is flocking? Flocking is this great material that comes in little jars that makes your paper look like velvet or a little plush. It comes in great colors (NESC has Doodlebug Flock that comes in a great set of little jars). Trust me on this one folks . . . a little flock goes a long, long way.

Now . . . a little story! When I was a kid growing up in Ohio in the 60's (yes . . . the 60's) my mother wanted to flock her Christmas tree. I remember that she had the tree in the garage and bought a flocking kit. Some family friends came over and they flocked the tree. There was raucous laughter over the flocking of the tree. All of us kids were in watching Rudolph on television. We were young. We didn't understand. In my opinion, it was just a bunch of adults in the garage spraying all this chunky white stuff on the tree and waiting for it to dry. They talked about flocking a lot . . . and there was a great deal of laughter. I didn't see the humor. Fast forward to me at 48 years of age. I get it now. It was actually at some point this past holiday at a crop that I understood the laughter. My mother saying, "Norm is flocking our tree." takes on a whole new meaning when you're not in the first grade.

You can flock your paper, and while doing so in a group setting it makes for great conversation. People say things like . . .

• What the flock.
• Get the flock out of here.
• What are you flocking?
• Are you flocking?
• Did you flock?
• Get your flock on.

I have never heard so many grown women using the word flock in so many ways. So I challenge you all to flock! Get some flock and some paper and go flocking crazy people!

That's flock people . . . remember . . . keep it clean.

Preparing to Inspire

I have not been very productive this week with my hands, but my brain has not stopped. I've been putting a lot of thought into a particular assignment that I'm working on for my favorite home away from home, New England Scrapbook Company. It's all about inspiring other people, and boy was I inspired today. Went down to my home away from home and saw the makeover happening in the crop room. Can't wait to sit down and create in that new environment.

And . . . my special assignment (which will be announced on the NESC blog soon) is going to incorporate the fresh new walls of our crop room. I cannot wait! It's going to be fun. I'll blog about it here soon, but in the meantime, here's a quote to ponder . . .

“When we engage in what we are naturally suited to do, our work takes on the quality of play and it is play that stimulates creativity.” – Linda Naiman

It's 2010 and the Creativity is Flowing!

Oh, these resolutions have me hopping. I was incredibly busy this weekend working on some projects that I had in my head. They needed to get out of my head, through my brain, into my hands. They made it!

Bo Bunny's chipboard albums come in so many colors and I purchased three different colors. A red, a green and a white. I mixed up the pages so I had three multi-colored albums and then used coordinating papers, ribbon and embellishments to create some colorful, fun gift albums for next year. NEXT YEAR. Can you believe it? Now this is just insane. My resolutions are working fast and furious.

I also created a great chipboard album display for a coworker who just had a beautiful, new granddaughter. I painted the edges of the chipboard white, bought some coordinating paper, picked out some ribbon and with the help of my Cropodile, we created a beautiful double-sided I was so proud of myself this past weekend, and while there was more that I needed to accomplish, there is another weekend right around the corner.

So, here's to my first few days of 2010. I have more goals for this week. If I post them here, perhaps they will come true.

First, I need to create something new for the store I design for . . . a new project . . . super secret (kind of) and to be announced sometime soon.

Second, I need to start working on my hockey albums for my players (I create scrapbooks for players of the Hartford Wolf*Pack . . . more on that another day).

Third, I need to get to a class layout for an upcoming class.

All in good time. It's a great year!

Happy Scrapping and Happy New Year!

"I love the mornings! I clap my hands every morning and say, 'This is gonna be a great day!'"

Yes, another movie quote. Anyone know what movie? Keep reading.

The "voice of reason" in the movie that I'm quoting is that of "Dickie Fox." He was a mentor to the main character. He also said . . .

- The key to this business is personal relationships.

- If this (pointing to his heart) is empty, this (pointing to his head) doesn't matter.

- Hey, I don't have all the answers. In life, to be honest, I failed as much as I have succeeded. But I love my wife. I love my life. And I wish you my kind of success.

Can you name the movie now?

Granted this is the same movie that touted "Show me the money!" and "I did NOT shoplift the pootie." But nonetheless, Jerry Maguire had some memorable quotes, and I would put it on the list of movies that would end my channel surfing if I found it on TBS one night.

I think that Dorothy Boyd had a telling line as well, when after leaving her job after reading Jerry's memo/mission statement she told Jerry, "I just want to be inspired." Yes, Dorothy. Don't we all. What inspires me? Cardstock, pattern paper, embellishments, die cuts, ribbon, colors, ink, stickers . . . and then the perfect recipe or the perfect photos.

I cannot just sit down and scrapbook. I need to be inspired. Sometimes I just need a suggestion or a little push. If someone hands me a stack of paper and says, "Do something with this." I can do it. In fact, I have a better shot at doing it than the projects that I really want to do. I am less inspired by myself and more inspired by others. I need to be challenged. Give me an ugly sheet of paper and challenge me to do something nice with it. I can usually get the job done.

There were a few things that inspired me over the holiday, and they are leading me to come with a list of resolutions and challenges for the new year. There will be a concrete list coming up soon, but here are just a few that came up over the holiday . . .

• My daughters, age 24 and 21, standing in line at the mall with all of the young children to have their photo taken with Santa Claus so they could put it in my stocking. Kelly tells me that the Polar Express display, which included all kinds of gadgets and gismos for the kids to keep busy in line, made her absolutely crazy. But she did it for me. It will certainly inspire a holiday layout, but even more so made me realize that sometimes you have to make sacrifices to have your photo taken. I do not like photos of myself, but I will scrap more photos of myself this year, regardless of how horrible I think I look in the photos.

• My oldest daughter, Tracy, put together an interesting holiday gift for her cousin. It was his very own action figure, and she raided my tools to get the job done. It was creative, personal and was a bit of 3-D scrapping. It has inspired me to make more handmade gifts in the coming year. In fact, while at New England Scrapbook this weekend, I picked out some Bo Bunny Chipboard Albums and some of the new We R Memory Keepers Merry & Bright paper (there is one called "Whoville") and embellishments and I plan to make some gift albums for next year.

• A self portrait that my younger daughter took of herself with my dog, Samantha, has inspired me to take a self portrait and scrapbook at least one per week in an album about me and a year in my life. It's something we hate to do, but this is the year that I'm going to do it. Stay tuned for that one.

I see big things coming in 2010. I am going to challenge myself regularly, and I have just a few days to get my challenges in order.

Wait for it . . . it's going to be something. Although exactly what it's going to be, I'm not sure yet.

So just wait for it.

The Answer: Nothing

The Question: What's been going on with your blog?

I have been feeling so uninspired to scrapbook. I haven't quite been able to put my finger on the problem. But today I found a combination of things that led me to my crop room at home. First, my kids are back from college, so I found myself retreating to my "woman cave" (my crop room). Second, I felt that a little organization was in order and bought some wire stackable shelves to give myself a little more cropping room.

Let's talk about my crop room for a minute. It started as a room that was going to be for scrapbooking, sewing, and whatever other crafts I might want to work on. It ended as a crop room only, and in the process of getting it set up I learned that I have way too much stuff. Not only that, but I managed to trash another spare bedroom in the process of setting it up. I have sewing stuff stacked and now have to face the fact that I will need an additional room for sewing. Hobbies are tough.

As for the "way too much stuff", I have high hopes that I will sell some of it on Ebay someday, or perhaps at an NESC Tag Sale. However, first I need to have an intervention with myself because I clearly have way too much paper that I can't part with. I made a promise that I would not buy more, and then I bought more. We all know the rule. If you don't get it while it's there, you won't get it when it's gone.

So my crop room can be a basic disaster. My most recent task was to get the shelves up and to make die cut tools more accessible. I also had to clear an entire shelf on my wall (my wall has three utility shelves that house Rubbermaid containers of embellishments and fabric, scrapbooks finished and unfinished, and the Art Bin 12 x 12 containers of paper (I love Art Bin's containers . . . no one else's come close). Clearing a shelf was no easy task, but alas the Cricut is out of the box and needed a home. Provided I stick to cutting 12 x 12, the shelf will work. If I ever decide to cut wall art in a larger size, I'll clearly have to find a new home for it.

With organization done, I finally got around to making some new bags. I thumbed through a few magazines, ripped out a few pages, got a few ideas and was reading to scrapbook.

That said, I successfully finished a layout for an upcoming class at New England Scrapbook Company. Many years ago I purchased a Quickutz die that looks like a lego block. My intention was to do a "Downtown Disney" layout. After five or six years I can finally check that one off my list. Talk about procrastination.

I'll be home tomorrow and will hopefully keep my creativity flowing enough to design our one more page for the Disney class. I'm looking to do a page on Magic Kingdom (I've got this castle die cut that is just begging to be constructed, stickled and adhered to a page.

And then perhaps our family's Christmas cards. Better late than never! I can spread holiday cheer the day after Christmas just as much as before. Remember . . . it's the holiday season, not just a day. It will get done.

It's in the Bag

Just finished up my weekend at New England Scrapbook and managed to pick up a few goodies for myself, including a few new Sizzix die cuts.

So with my new blog I decided that I needed a weekly challenge. I find that I think a lot of working on a new project, but I don't always follow through. Why not challenge myself to use items from my stash and then post pictures on my blog with what I've created. Hmmm . . . how long will this last?

Since the newest items in my stash are the die cuts I picked up this weekend, I decided the time was right for a little Sizzix challenge. So I grabbed some supplies and went to work . . .

• Sizzix Bigz Bag Die w/handles
• Sizzix Party Set
• Sizzix Decorate Label Set
• Cardstock - 1 full sheet and some other scraps of varying colors
• Pattern Paper - just enough for a couple of 3 x 3 scraps
• Ribbon Scraps
• Stickles

I managed to create my first bag, which is a little birthday version. But I have plans . . . big plans . . . for a few more. Well, alright, maybe not big plans. But I'm going to make a few more before the week is out, and I'll post them. How exciting.

The weekend was busy. The Scrapbook Summit and the croppers that we had made for some great conversation this weekend. I was also happy to learn that the November Kit of the Month is selling well! Since I designed it, there is always this little bit of fear that it will still be on the shelves next Thanksgiving. But it doesn't look like that will be the case (she wipes the sweat from her brow and says, "Phew!"

Stay tuned for more bags and future challenges. I've already got my eyes set on my challenge for next week. If anyone has an idea for what I should do, send it my way.

Until then . . . go create!

I can be Jell-o!

As if I need one more new thing!

As if I need another reason to be at my computer!

So anyway, I'm at work this morning at my second job which is New England Scrapbook Company in Canton, and my friend Christy got me thinking about the fact that I don't have a blog. I think all the creative people have blogs. So I saw her looking at blogs and finding all these really creative ideas and photos on scrapbooking, and I thought . . . hmmm . . . maybe I need a blog.

As if I'm not creative without a blog. Well, sometimes I don't feel very creative. But I realize that all of the really cool creative people have blogs.

I always think about that line in "My Best Friend's Wedding" when "Julianne" (played by Julia Roberts) and "Kimmy" (played by Cameron Diaz) are discussing what Kimmy's future fiancè needs. I guess he was a "Jell-o" kind of guy, and Julianne thinks that Kimmy is Crème Brûlée. Julianne says, "Crème Brûlée can never be Jell-O. YOU could never be Jell-O." And then Kimmy says, in a whiny little voice . . . "I can be Jell-o."

The Crème Brûlée of scrapbooking is when you have so much stuff that you can't figure out how to be creative anymore. You spend more time buying supplies and thinking about them then actually doing anything. The Jell-o of scrapbooking is when your "stuff" and your "creativity" all come together. It all gels!

I've got a blog now. What this means is that when I have no creative flow going and when I spend more time organizing my supplies than scrapbooking . . . when I'm so bogged down with which die cuts to use, what patterned paper to start with, which way to cut the paper, which way to layout the title, I now have the simple solution. I just step over to the computer and remind myself that I now have this creative blog. I'm creative now.

I can be Jell-o!